Maronda Homes - new builder in Cinci region? Any complaints? (Columbus: lenders, attorney)

[bigfmaily]

Hi
Thanks for all that information on Maronda homes. We also are on the hunt for a home for our big family and had them in mind. We also saw homes from the builder Highland Homes. I was wondering if anyone heard good or bad things about them?

[philmac62]

Why would you want to build a new house with what is obviously the lowest of the low end builders out there when you can go out and buy a house that is just a few years old for the same money. Plus they will already be landscaped and include driveways (who ever heard of a builder not including a driveway). I live down the road from a new development that Maronda is starting. It makes me cry every time I drive buy it. They essentially cut the side out of a 600ft completely wooded hill so they could put in a road to reach the top of the hill. They can't build any houses on the hill because it is too steep, only the top. Now there is not a tree in site for the 100 acres or so that they clear cut and burned. All this so they can build a handfull of cheap boxes on it. There are plenty of builders out there building quality homes that you can get for a steal right now. Not to mention all of the homes just a few years old that are ready to move in right now. I have lived in Cincinnati for over 20 years. Maronda is brand new to this area and I guess trying to find buyers who have never heard of their issues from other parts of the state. And why anyone would want to live in this environmental disaster they call a development is beyond me.

[Briolat21]

Well - since I was the OP (original poster) and I started this thread in JULY of 2007 and I decided NOT to use Maronda in SEPTEMBER of 2007... I guess that's all I can say to your questions.

But for others who are interested in Maronda (be it in Ohio or Florida or whatever) this thread lives on...

[YoMikey617]

Originally Posted by Briolat21

Well - since I was the OP (original poster) and I started this thread in JULY of 2007 and I decided NOT to use Maronda in SEPTEMBER of 2007... I guess that's all I can say to your questions.

But for others who are interested in Maronda (be it in Ohio or Florida or whatever) this thread lives on...

TRUE THAT !

Building codes DO NOT protect consumers. They're bottom of the barrell, and home inspectors can be like doctors you always need a 2nd / 3rd opinion to have "decent" confidence in a home's condition. And then you have 3 well insured parties that you can sue if anything goes wrong.

[longshot3000]

The hill you are discussing was developed by a developer that has nothing to do with Maronda. Originally another major builder went in there and then pulled out because they weren't committed enough to Cincinnati. Maronda then went in after and purchased from the developer. Also concrete driveways and landscaping is included in Maronda's homes. Also with this development you're talking about there will be homes that run all the way up the hill not just at the top. I would suggest you look around the west side more closely; the whole area is hills!! Where else are people going to build!!

Originally Posted by philmac62

Why would you want to build a new house with what is obviously the lowest of the low end builders out there when you can go out and buy a house that is just a few years old for the same money. Plus they will already be landscaped and include driveways (who ever heard of a builder not including a driveway). I live down the road from a new development that Maronda is starting. It makes me cry every time I drive buy it. They essentially cut the side out of a 600ft completely wooded hill so they could put in a road to reach the top of the hill. They can't build any houses on the hill because it is too steep, only the top. Now there is not a tree in site for the 100 acres or so that they clear cut and burned. All this so they can build a handfull of cheap boxes on it. There are plenty of builders out there building quality homes that you can get for a steal right now. Not to mention all of the homes just a few years old that are ready to move in right now. I have lived in Cincinnati for over 20 years. Maronda is brand new to this area and I guess trying to find buyers who have never heard of their issues from other parts of the state. And why anyone would want to live in this environmental disaster they call a development is beyond me.

[longshot3000]

You can use any lender you want. You can have a realtor now. In Cincinnati concrete driveways, walks and landscaping are all included.

Originally Posted by jennazer

You are also locked into using only their lender. You absolutely cannot use the lender of your choice which makes it impossible to shop around for the best interest rate. Also, if you have a realtor helping you, forget it. They won't even talk to you with a realtor because they know a realtor will be able to point out the scams they are pulling on their homebuyers. If you do decide to go with them make sure you ask what is included as well. With our house we did not get a driveway, just stone (although they now include driveways with all homes, at least in our old development) and no one in the whole development got a walk way. They just threw down concrete pavers and made concrete steps stacked up high to get in the front door on the houses that were on the low side. The high side houses did have steps with a railing (required by code) going up to the door but no walk way. Just concrete square pavers. Everyone had to pay to get a walkway put in and most had to pay for driveways like us before they changed it. Most people didn't put driveways or walkways in leaving the area looking terrible with nothing but stone and concrete pavers with weeds growing up between them.

[philmac62]

Can't wait to see these houses slide down this hill. Hillside building is one thing, destroying the hillside is another. There are thousands of examples of well engineered, eco-friendly hillside building in Cincinnati. This developer could have utilized this property to build a small number of very upscale homes and made it a showcase of how to build on such difficult terrain. But no. They wanted to go for the lowest common denominator and build as many low cost homes as possible and completely make a waste of a beautiful area. That is my problem. And the county government has no standards whatsoever, so they say go ahead do what you want. We just want our cut of the property taxes. If they would all use their heads they would realize doing the right development for the area would have generated more income for everyone. I will gladly sit back and laugh 5 years from now when that barren eroding hillside is still there with maybe a handful of houses on it.

[longshot3000]

THis community was engineered for Ryan Homes by a developer. Ryan stepped out. Maronda came in. These homes are going to average $250k to $300k with an average lot size of 1/3 acre. That doesn't seem like the lowest common denominator and are not low cost homes!!!!
Have you even been in a Maronda home?
Are you an architect?
Do you have a construction engineering degree?
Do you have an environmental engineering degree?
Do you have a landscape engineering degree?
You have absolutely no idea what your talking about. Quit spouting your negative, uninformed opinion.

P.S. All you other people out there-NOT ONE HOME HAS BEEN BUILT OUT THERE YET!! How the hell can this person speak intelligently about this!

Originally Posted by philmac62

Can't wait to see these houses slide down this hill. Hillside building is one thing, destroying the hillside is another. There are thousands of examples of well engineered, eco-friendly hillside building in Cincinnati. This developer could have utilized this property to build a small number of very upscale homes and made it a showcase of how to build on such difficult terrain. But no. They wanted to go for the lowest common denominator and build as many low cost homes as possible and completely make a waste of a beautiful area. That is my problem. And the county government has no standards whatsoever, so they say go ahead do what you want. We just want our cut of the property taxes. If they would all use their heads they would realize doing the right development for the area would have generated more income for everyone. I will gladly sit back and laugh 5 years from now when that barren eroding hillside is still there with maybe a handful of houses on it.

[levelhead]

Wow! It looks like philmac62 has more issues with the cut in the hillside than Maronda Homes. Is there an eco-complaint blog out there? Since he lives down the road and clearly knows everything about developing land, I’m surprised that he didn’t know that the developer and another builder had started the community. Weird.

I’m disturbed by the “bottom of the barrel” remark. How does a person come to that conclusion?

My husband and I own a Maronda Home as does my mother-in-law. By the way- we both have driveways, as do all of the Maronda Homes! We have been very happy so far!

When I was researching homes to buy, we started with the Better Business Bureau, which may be a better research source than a blog. We found that although Maronda had complaints posted against them, they had all been resolved. I think that how a company handles a complaint is a true measure of the company’s commitment to the client.

EVERY builder that I looked up had complaints. Remarkably, Maronda had zero complaints in Cincinnati. That was encouraging!

I did what one blogger suggested. I drove through the community on a windy Sunday afternoon and talked with 3 Maronda homeowners. One of them had some things that Maronda had fixed for him, but they all had good things to say about Maronda. The homes in the Monroe community looked great.

I contacted Duke Energy to find out about utility bills. I explained to them that I was home shopping and gave them 5 addresses. They told me what the average bill was. I was amazed and still am by the energy efficiency of these homes. I have a Sunbury home with a finished basement. It is about 3300 square feet. Our bill has never been above $180 and my husband blasts the heat!

I also talked to a friend of mine who worked for another builder. He said that he thought Maronda probably builds a good enough home because the building technology that Maronda uses is the same as what his company and most other large builders in the Cincinnati area use. Side note: He now works elsewhere because the builder that he was working for closed all of their communities in Butler County and fired half of their employees.

I’m not a builder and have limited knowledge on the topic, but I like that Maronda uses the latest technology. It impresses me that they build with the most state of the art products and processes! I want cutting edge technology to be used in the construction of the biggest purchase I will ever make!

We have gotten a lot of compliments on our new home. When we were first buying it and my husband’s mom came to take a look, she liked it so much that she bought one in Franklin.

We have both had small issues, but Maronda has taken care of everything. Now my sister who lives in Erlanger is looking at a Maronda Home in one of the new Kentucky neighborhoods.

Philmac62- We did not want to buy a used home with someone else’s dog pee or toenail clippings in the carpet. We wanted a brand new home, built with the latest technology and energy efficiency! Mine is a 90% efficient furnace, but Maronda now has 95% efficient furnaces standard- at no extra cost.

We could have used any mortgage company. IT’S ILLEGAL TO FORCE SOMEONE TO USE A LENDER- NO BUILDER CAN DO THAT!! We used Maronda’s because they had the best fixed rate and they paid $5000 in closing costs for us.

My next-door neighbor used a realtor to buy his house. Maronda pays realtors.

I would encourage anyone looking at a new home to do research outside of online blogs. For some reason, blogs seem to attract people who love to complain and bad mouth and generally have a chip on their shoulder about whatever is bothering them on that day! Choose a topic, any topic, and that topic blog will have pages of disgruntled cranks with nothing but horrific stories to share….. You know, physical exercise helps improve frame of mind. Of course that would require stepping away from the computer…..

[YoMikey617]

I knew this thread was bothering me for a good reason...

Do you ever watch Extreme Home Makeover ??? It's the show where some poor down and out family gets a new home... There was an episode that took place in Whitehall, Ohio (Columbus) where a relocated Marine / 9-11 Firefighter and his family (from NYC) had bought a home that was literally falling apart in every respect. The house was becoming a hazard to live in and the bank wouldn't help the family.

THE HOUSE WAS BUILT BY MARONDA !!!

Extreme Home Makeover teamed up with M/I to tear down the first home built by Maronda, and then they built a brand new home for the family.

Here's the thread on the Columbus board where they talk about the teardown being a Marnoda home.

Extreme Makeover in Columbus