Want to inform people considering MidCountry Homes out of Wisconsin about my dealings with the company. I think they make a really good looking product and build a tank of a home but they do not stand behind it when something goes wrong. I ordered a brand new 16 x 80 home from them with a drywall upgrade. The home arrived at my park with around 36 different drywall cracks throughout it and I have received repair estimates from $3,500 - $5,000. Spoke with the company, sent them the estimates and pictures of the cracks and they say because they are only “hairline” cracks they will not do anything about it. One of these “hairline” cracks runs up the side wall of the living room then across the ceiling and down the other side of the room. I asked them since I have such a large number of “hairline” cracks throughout the house and the repair cost is so high are they sure there is nothing they can do. I never got an answer back. I am now in the process of trying to find a lawyer to explore if there is any way to resolve this problem cost effectively.
The next homes I ordered were from Clayton. Any issue I found upon delivery they requested a picture and a repair invoice and sent me a check IMMEDIATELY. I have nothing but good things to say about Clayton.
I’m a General manager of a retailer. Typically drywall cracks won’t be covered under any manufacturers warranty. We have to build drywall repairs into the price of the home anytime we are selling a drywall model. Those estimates are steep though. Typically on a singlewide we will spend $1,000-$1,500 range.
Thank you. I even got a 3rd estimate from a trusted contractor I use and he ballparked $5,000. Have you ever seen or heard of 36 indvidual cracks? Does that seem normal or excessive? This was the first build of a new floor plan for them I dont know if that has something to do with it either.
We operate two parks in WI (www.hillcrestestates.net and www.villadiann.com) and buy a lot of MidCountry homes. We have been happy with the quality. We expect some cracks and adjustments for each home. 36 cracks seem excessive. I have not seen that many with their homes in our orders. We spend about $500 per home for touch up, which is reasonable.
I have seen something like this and serious quality issues with another builder that we no longer work with, but not with MidCountry.
Thank you for your input on your experience. I too would have no problem with fixing a few cracks for a total of $500 that is to be expected. But my situation is 10x that and they will not contribute anything to the repair. I had been impressed with them up to that point but after this issue and the response I have received which was tough luck, I will never deal with them again.
JCas06
I would agree that 36 cracks is a lot. But the repair prices you received for drywall fixes seems excessive. We can replace drywall on an entire home for that price.
Have you done the following with Mid Country
Complete their service paperwork and document issues with photos
Inquired about their service program. They will basically come out and repair any issues for a flat price - far cheaper than your quotes. i don’t recall the cost for a single wide.
We have been extremely pleased working with Mid Country, both with the quality and the service. Some homes do have more issue than others but in general we budget post move in repairs to be around $300-500.
Thank you Howard for your post. All I can say is I have gotten 3 bids for the work. One was $3,500 plus $375 to move furniture, one was $5,000, and the last was also $5,000 from a contractor I like and trust. If I were to get more bids they would be from companies 45+ minutes away as I have exhausted all in my local area. I did complete the service paperwork and sent them many many photos to document the cracks. They looked at this and said they are what they consider “hairline cracks” and therefore do not cover anything. I pushed back multiple times, and if I remember correctly the issue went to higher people on the totem pole and not one time did they tell me they will come out and repair issues for a flat price. Instead they just stopped responding. I will try and inquire about that flat fee now that I know.
Want to provide an update on my MidCountry Homes situation. I reached out to the company about the issues described above once again. This time I think my complaint was passed very high up and they have agreed to reimburse the cost of the drywall repair. So I want to be fair and let everyone know they have stepped up and done the right thing.