Family's $1.6m 'dream home' hit by army of termites, oozing red liquid and flickering lights, lawsuit claims

A California family has revenge a suit claiming a existent property developer botched nan building of their dream home, forcing them to unrecorded successful rental properties because they do not consciousness safe inside.

Jill and Matt Spaulding purchased their $1.6 cardinal four-bedroom, three-bath dream location astatine 3250 Lama Ave successful Long Beach successful nan outpouring of 2022.

But aft closing connected escrow - a determination they said they were pressured into - nan mates discovered horrific defects successful nan property.

'This communicative is truthful overmuch worse than a bad flip aliases a contractor cutting corners. It is simply a communicative of our family being exposed to galore toxic wellness hazards that we whitethorn beryllium dealing pinch for years to come,' Jill told The Orange County Register.

The 38-year-old mother-of-three said soon aft her family moved in, they noticed nan bath lights flickered, termites were crawling on nan walls and nan ceiling oozed reddish liquid from nan debris-clogged drain of a malfunctioning aerial conditioning system.

Asbestos, mold and fungus were detected passim nan house, and they discovered an improperly installed h2o heater had vented vulnerable c monoxide straight into nan level of nan couple's bedroom.

'Quite frankly, we still are not judge really we are still live aft our basking h2o heater situation,' Jill said. 

The parents nary longer felt comfortable letting their children - now ages 5, 3, and 7 months - unrecorded successful nan house, truthful they bounced astir betwixt hotels and Airbnbs until settling into a rental spot successful Los Alamitos successful May 2023. 

'The deficiency of stableness and being perpetually moved to chartless places affected my children's slumber and wellness and had psychological effects,' said Jill. 

The Spaulding's decided to return ineligible action against nan existent property developer who worked connected nan house, RS Real Estate Plus, nan company's CEO Raafat Salem, Lisa Richmond, a agent pinch its affiliated company, RS Prime Properties, and their ain relator Anne Hulegard of RE/MAX Estate Properties successful Redondo Beach.

The suit claims Salem and Richmond covered up nan home's structural problems and unpermitted building and that Hulegard was alert of it but did not show them.

'The magnitude of hardship that this flipper and his businesses person created for our family cannot beryllium put into words. The effect this has had connected america physically, financially and emotionally is indescribable,' said Jill.

The Southern California News Group reported location are nary records of building permits issued to RS Real Estate Plus for renovations astatine nan Spaulding's home.

The suit lists defects specified arsenic a hot h2o heater that vents poison c monoxide into nan second-floor joist bay, a defective HVAC strategy pinch abandoned ducts pinch asbestos which were near successful nan attic, raccoon feces near successful nan attic and mold.

The Spauldings besides said that Hulegard pressured them to complete escrow contempt nan location failing inspections. 

'At each times anterior to adjacent of escrow, [the Spaudlings] were unaware of nan beingness of nan above-referenced defects. Had [the Spauldings] been warned by Defendants to analyse each of nan items of activity that Defendants knew had been performed by Seller without a permit, [the Spauldings] would person done so, and arsenic a result, would not person closed connected nan acquisition of nan property,' nan suit said. 

The mates is asking nan tribunal to rescind nan acquisition statement and bid restitution of $1.6 cardinal positive interest.