Is builder obligated to provide what is in the building plan?
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Is builder obligated to provide what is in the building plan?
We are building a home and have signed our contract. We verbally requested
several times for a bedroom in the partially finished basement to be framed, we
would potentially finish it later. The contract does not specifically call out
the bedroom being framed but does call out the rec room being finished. The
floor plans outline the bedroom and have dotted lines around it which are
specified that they mean they will be framed. So, the plans reflect our request
to be framed although it is not specifically called out in the contract. Now,
the builder is saying it will be an additional 1200 to fram the bedroom. Do we
have any rights based on the plan?
Asked on November 8, 2017 under Real Estate Law, Wisconsin
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
When you have a signed, written contract, it trumps or supercedes any prior discussions or plans; and a written contract can only be modified in writing, by the agreement of all parties. Therefore, your oral (that's the better term than "verbal") request in line with the plans is not binding on the builder unless the contract specifically said that the home would be built to the plans and that the plans were "incorporated" into the contract. If the plans were not made part of the contract, you cannot enforce them, but rather the builder only needs to build to the contract.
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