the New Modern Home

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• By Brian P.

  February 21, 2022

  This builder terminated my home build contract over a year after signing, with the home nearly complete, after I declined to accept a nearly quarter million increase above the signed contract price.

• By John S.

  December 22, 2021

  New build

  $1,000,000

  UPDATE: The New Modern Home is deleting my posts on their Facebook page warning prospective homebuyers in regards to the unethical practices I have experienced. I feel compelled to share with the broader public. Please see details below. Thank you.

  I came across The New Modern Home (TNMH) during an online Google search of home builders that focus on modern architecture in the DFW area. My initial outreach was to research the company on a custom home I was looking to build from scratch. During my conversations with Amy Harney, I was informed that TNMH would be able to tweak one of their existing floor plans and allow customization on all the finishes. What pushed me to sign with TNMH was that at the time I was offered some additional incentives if I signed a contract before the end of the month (November 2020). The incentives included a washer and dryer and a $5,000 closing credit. Up until that point I had no reason to believe the horrible experience I was about to get into. During the initial meeting with the designer, we went over our checklist of customized finishes that I wanted to go with. It was at that point I began to experience some red flags. After reviewing the flooring and tile options, I asked if I could choose a different set of flooring and tile outside of what TNMH had available on their internal selection list. I was told that would not be an option due to a liability issue. I found this strange but gave TNMH the benefit of the doubt and chose the options they had. Again, initially I emphasized the importance of being able to choose all the finishes whether on the selection list or externally and this was not brought up as an issue at all. Soon into 2021, I was told my representative (Amy) was going back to school and that I would be assigned a new representative (Jim Garrison). This is when things took a serious turn for the worse. I reached out to Jim via e-mail (March 2021) to confirm that my pricing was fixed and that with all the increase in costs occurring in the home construction industry, I would not be liable or impacted. Jim responded in writing stating "Good question, your contract price and any upgrades are set at the contract price." This clearly led me to believe I have nothing to worry about in regards to price increases.

  Fast forward to September 2021 and I received an e-mail from Jim asking for an additional $10,000 for our staircase. The staircase we chose was an upgrade and per Jim the materials for the staircase increased so the cost was being passed to the homeowner since the item was an "upgrade." I asked Jim about the e-mail from March 2021 and he simply stated we have the option to pass on increases without acknowledging the prior confirmation. In any event, I was at a point where there was a lot of time invested and decided to pay for the extra costs. I got on a phone call with both Jim and the CEO, Jimmy Tanghongs to express my concerns and lack of remorse for the false promise that was made back in March 2021. I also inquired if all the remaining materials were purchased so that I could not expect any more surprises. The response from TNMH was that the only cost increases related to upgrades would be passed on. I asked the CEO, "if we were in a market where all of a sudden the real estate prices went down significantly and the home I purchased pre-construction is now worth less, would you cut me a check for the difference?" The response was radio silence. I also asked if they could provide a timeframe on the completion of the home given initially they said up to a year but in the case of my home between 6-9 months. They would not provide any clarity and simply stated we will have more clarity once the kitchen is installed.

  Fast forward again to December 2021 and I received another e-mail from Jim. This time stating that they are now passing on an additional ~$300,000 to myself and that I had until then end of the week to respond if I would bring the check to closing for the overages. Mind you the ~$300,000 amounted to almost a 50% increase on what I actually went under contract for. Basically I had a few days to let them know if I could bring ~$300,000. When I asked for an itemization on all the increases the response from Jim was that TNMH will NOT be providing supporting documentation. Completely unprofessional and unethical. To add insult to injury, TNMH also went back on their incentives related to if I signed the contract I would get a washer and dryer and a closing credit of $5,000. The response was the incentive expired in September 2021. However, I stated understood but then why did your representative (Amy Harney) bring this to my attention 2 months later? TNMH should honor their word. I also have the incentive package in writing via e-mail and at no point was there any mention of the promotion having expired September 2021.

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