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Building a New Home

If you’re building a new home, there are things you need to know before you begin. Learn about construction standards and about buying land, so you know your rights.

MPS Supplementing Model Building Codes
 
The Minimum Property Standards (MPS) establish certain minimum standards for buildings constructed under HUD housing programs. This includes new single-family homes, multi-family housing and healthcare-type facilities.
HUD Minimum Property Standards and How They Supplement the Model Building Codes
Building a home-Until the mid-1980s, HUD maintained separate Minimum Property Standards for different types of structures. Since that time, HUD has accepted the model building codes, including over 250 referenced standards and local building codes, in lieu of separate and prescriptive HUD standards. However, there is one major area of difference between the MPS and other model building codes — durability requirements. Homes and projects financed by FHA-insured mortgages are the collateral for these loans, and their lack of durability can increase the FHA’s financial risk in the event of default. More specifically, the model codes do not contain any minimum requirements for the durability of items such as doors, windows, gutters and downspouts, painting and wall coverings, kitchen cabinets and carpeting. The MPS includes minimum standards for these, and other items, to ensure that the value of an FHA-insured home is not reduced by the deterioration of these components.
Read the Property Report Before Signing Anything
 
This report is prepared and issued by the developer of this subdivision. It is not prepared or issued by the federal government. Federal law requires that you receive this report prior to signing a contract or agreement to buy or lease a lot in this subdivision. However, no federal agency has judged the merits or value of the property. If you received the report prior to signing a contract or agreement, you may cancel your contract or agreement by giving notice to the seller any time before midnight of the seventh day following the signing of the contract or agreement. If you did not receive this report before you signed a contract or agreement, you may cancel the contract or agreement any time within two years from the date of signing.

Your Contract Rights

 
If the lot you are buying is subject to the jurisdiction of the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, the contract or purchase agreement must inform you of certain rights given to buyers by that Act. The contract should state that the buyer has a “cooling-off” period of seven days (or longer, if provided by state law) following the day that the contract is signed to cancel the contract, for any reason, by notice to the seller, and get his or her money back. Furthermore, unless the contract states that the seller will give the buyer a warranty deed, within 180 days after the contract is signed, the buyer has a right to cancel the contract for up to two years from the day that the contract is signed, unless the contract contains the following provisions:
  • a clear description of the lot so that the buyer may record the contract with the proper county authority;
  • the right of the buyer to a notice of any default (by the buyer), and at least 20 days after receipt of that notice to cure or remedy the default;
  • a limitation on the amount of money the seller may keep as liquidated damages, of 15% of the principal paid by the buyer (exclusive of interest) or the seller’s actual damages, whichever is greater.

Contract Rights Concerning Property Reports

Building a home-It has always been the law that if the developer has an obligation to register with the Interstate Land Sales Division, the developer or sales agent must give the buyer a copy of the current property report before the buyer signs a contract. Otherwise, the buyer has up to two years to cancel the contract and get their money back. That fact must also be clearly set forth in all contracts. You may have the right to void the contract if the subdivision has not been registered with HUD, or you were not given a property report. Furthermore, if the developer has represented that it will provide or complete roads, water, sewer, gas, electricity or recreational facilities in its property report, in its advertising, or in its sales promotions, the developer must obligate itself to do so in the contract, clearly and conditionally (except for acts of nature or impossibility of performance). In addition to the right to a full disclosure of information about the lot, the prospective buyer may have the right to void the contract and receive a refund of their money if the developer has failed to register the subdivision with HUD or has failed to supply the purchaser with a property report. While a purchaser may have the right to void the contract with the developer under these conditions, the purchaser may still be liable for contract payments to a third party if that contract has been assigned to a financing institution or some similar entity. The registration is retained by HUD and is available for public inspection. If the property report contains misstatements of fact, if there are omissions, if fraudulent sales practices are used, or if other provisions of the law have been violated, the purchaser may also sue to recover damages and actual costs and expenses in court against the developer. However, depending on when your sale occurred, you may be barred from taking further action due to the Act’s statute of limitations. Your attorney can advise you further on this matter.