Anonymous wrote:We have spent hours reviewing the options and making selections on our new Evergreene home. Unfortunately, the contract has a provision allowing the builder to substitute selection items if they are unable to get items through their normal channels. It is disappointing to us that the cabinet design of the owner's suite bathroom has changed significantly over what was selected along with the change in appliances. You may think you are buying a new home and selecting the items you want but in the end, the contract is so slanted to the builder that you may not be getting the end product you set out to buy. When you are reviewing the contract prior to purchase, I would presume this is a standard clause that is in most contracts. There has been no dialogue with the Evergreene Management to select substitute items. They make the decision as to what the replacement items will be and they give you no chance to select your substitute items. You spend 7 figures on a new home and you would think you could get what you want. Granted this is a provision of the contract, there is no communication from the builder and has been a great disappointment. You can see issues like this arising in the current environment and you would hope to have a constructive dialogue with the builder to have an amicable resolution. No such dialogue or resolution has taken place.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are currently building a home with Evergreene. Given a choice I should have paid more attention to the reviews on this site. Evergreene makes their money by constructing a home as quickly as possible and churning out 200+ homes a year. They do not listen to any input from the buyer. They are very rigid and I can only caution you to make sure you have everything documented and requested before you sign. Changes after they have your money and contract are almost non existent. The trades they are using are not craftsman and little supervision is given over the quality of the work performed. Communication is non existent. Calls and emails are often ignored with the hope that you will eventually give up from asking any questions. As the construction progresses you may see things that were not in the contract but should be addressed. They are not at all flexible. They build to the code but the work isn’t the best. Given the skill level of the workers more direct supervision is required to get a better quality product. Given a choice and based on my experience to date, I would not buy from Evergreene. There is not a good mutual working relationship between the buyer and builder. I think they could be a quality organization, but the production people executing the plan could care less about you. As other reviews have indicated I would be very cautious of selecting them to build your dream home. They are strictly a production builder, more dollar focused and not customer oriented.

Care to share some examples of quality issues you have noticed?

There is a preconstruction meeting prior to the start of the home where the plans are reviewed with the project manager to make sure that all parties are in agreement with the work to be performed. The construction problems started with the foundation which in some areas was over two inches out of square and not level. This had a ripple effect when the framing was completed as the concrete walls had to be parsed with concrete patch to get them closer to flush with the framing above. The carpenters had to compensate for the foundation issues. Concrete walls were cut for doors which were not in the plans and eventually these errant cuts had to be patched. Unfortunately, I wonder how much the project manager oversees the subcontractors and assurance that the plans are being followed. Too much work is completed which has to later be taken out and redone. Windows in the wrong place, wrong windows installed, garage ceiling 2 feet higher than per the plan, damaged roof truss, plumbing in the wrong location, concrete lead walk had to be removed and replaced, dryer and range vent installed through a metal standing seam metal roof had to be rerouted, basement floor had to be cut for a missing steel column eventually leading to a crack in the concrete basement floor, bowed basement concrete wall from movement of concrete framing when wall was poured, bowed interior studs and poor/loose blocking for cabinet installation, errant duct and venting holes in framing and exterior walls poorly patched, asphalt roof installed on a section of roof that had a standing seam metal roof per the plans and multiple incidents of beer cans and drinking on the job. The sales literature touts attention to detail. I wish there was a better dialogue with the builder to discuss such issues and help improve their operation in future builds.

Anonymous wrote:Hi All,

We are looking to buy a home in a new community built by Evergreene. Has anyone bought an Evergreene home? What has the experience been like? Any insights on them as a builder would be really helpful. Are there any gotchas? What should we be looking out for during contract negotiation? (We have never bought a home from a builder.) Should we opt for having the basement finished with the builder or look to do it later in life? (Price is a big concern as it will likely come out to 1.5 million which is the top end of our budget.)

We are looking at their Chapman model.

Anonymous wrote:Original poster again.

Thanks for those of you who have responded so far. Another question - Should we use a real estate agent or an attorney to review the contract?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are currently building a home with Evergreene. Given a choice I should have paid more attention to the reviews on this site. Evergreene makes their money by constructing a home as quickly as possible and churning out 200+ homes a year. They do not listen to any input from the buyer. They are very rigid and I can only caution you to make sure you have everything documented and requested before you sign. Changes after they have your money and contract are almost non existent. The trades they are using are not craftsman and little supervision is given over the quality of the work performed. Communication is non existent. Calls and emails are often ignored with the hope that you will eventually give up from asking any questions. As the construction progresses you may see things that were not in the contract but should be addressed. They are not at all flexible. They build to the code but the work isn’t the best. Given the skill level of the workers more direct supervision is required to get a better quality product. Given a choice and based on my experience to date, I would not buy from Evergreene. There is not a good mutual working relationship between the buyer and builder. I think they could be a quality organization, but the production people executing the plan could care less about you. As other reviews have indicated I would be very cautious of selecting them to build your dream home. They are strictly a production builder, more dollar focused and not customer oriented.

Care to share some examples of quality issues you have noticed?

There is a preconstruction meeting prior to the start of the home where the plans are reviewed with the project manager to make sure that all parties are in agreement with the work to be performed. The construction problems started with the foundation which in some areas was over two inches out of square and not level. This had a ripple effect when the framing was completed as the concrete walls had to be parsed with concrete patch to get them closer to flush with the framing above. The carpenters had to compensate for the foundation issues. Concrete walls were cut for doors which were not in the plans and eventually these errant cuts had to be patched. Unfortunately, I wonder how much the project manager oversees the subcontractors and assurance that the plans are being followed. Too much work is completed which has to later be taken out and redone. Windows in the wrong place, wrong windows installed, garage ceiling 2 feet higher than per the plan, damaged roof truss, plumbing in the wrong location, concrete lead walk had to be removed and replaced, dryer and range vent installed through a metal standing seam metal roof had to be rerouted, basement floor had to be cut for a missing steel column eventually leading to a crack in the concrete basement floor, bowed basement concrete wall from movement of concrete framing when wall was poured, bowed interior studs and poor/loose blocking for cabinet installation, errant duct and venting holes in framing and exterior walls poorly patched, asphalt roof installed on a section of roof that had a standing seam metal roof per the plans and multiple incidents of beer cans and drinking on the job. The sales literature touts attention to detail. I wish there was a better dialogue with the builder to discuss such issues and help improve their operation in future builds.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are currently building a home with Evergreene. Given a choice I should have paid more attention to the reviews on this site. Evergreene makes their money by constructing a home as quickly as possible and churning out 200+ homes a year. They do not listen to any input from the buyer. They are very rigid and I can only caution you to make sure you have everything documented and requested before you sign. Changes after they have your money and contract are almost non existent. The trades they are using are not craftsman and little supervision is given over the quality of the work performed. Communication is non existent. Calls and emails are often ignored with the hope that you will eventually give up from asking any questions. As the construction progresses you may see things that were not in the contract but should be addressed. They are not at all flexible. They build to the code but the work isn’t the best. Given the skill level of the workers more direct supervision is required to get a better quality product. Given a choice and based on my experience to date, I would not buy from Evergreene. There is not a good mutual working relationship between the buyer and builder. I think they could be a quality organization, but the production people executing the plan could care less about you. As other reviews have indicated I would be very cautious of selecting them to build your dream home. They are strictly a production builder, more dollar focused and not customer oriented.

Care to share some examples of quality issues you have noticed?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They mostly use Rex Wrap, and sometimes have it branded with their name. Some observations observations

1) if you are going to lose sleep over whether they are using something other than Tyvek and want to micromanage your build that much then they probably aren't the builder for you. If you are looking at them in the first place, you probably can't afford the builder you want as this type of person.

2) Don't expect them to do structural customization well. They bang out a lot of houses and uses teams that know their plans. If you start trying to make it a fully custom, see the end of point 1 above.

3) If you really are picky, they will do what you want. The further outside the bounds of what they normally do, the more it will cost. Want Tyvek? Negotiate it with them before you sign anything. They will give you a price and you can decide if its fair. Nail down as much as you can before you sign, that is when you have leverage. Negotiate discounts on future options chosen after signing. Once you sign, nobody is going to be tremendously flexible and bend over backwards for you.

4) Evergreene like all builders are experiencing supply chain delays currently. Anyone that expects their house to be delivered perfectly on time, especially in the current environment hasn't built a house before

THIS is a EG employee for sure!

But in all seriousness all family member built a semi-custom with them last year (single lot/design/build). No issues. They have been very happy! [/quote

Yup...Evergreen staff member. They are bad at hiding things. LOL