Columbia-based home builder Altieri Homes has been charged by Maryland's attorney general with taking deposits and payments from at least 20 homebuyers in Howard and Harford counties but failing to either start or finish building the homes, The Baltimore Sun learned late Thursday.
The charges, by a unit of the Consumer Protection Division, also say the regional builder, with custom-home developments in Maryland and Pennsylvania, failed to pay subcontractors or refund consumers' deposits or advance payments, a spokeswoman for the attorney general's office said. The attorney general's office is expected to announce the charges today, said spokeswoman Raquel Guillory.
"The law in Maryland requires new home builders to honor their commitments to home buyers and properly use their deposits and payments," Douglas F. Gansler, Maryland's attorney general, said in a statement. "My office will seek severe sanctions against builders who operate without being registered or fail to properly handle consumer deposits."
Representatives of Altieri, which closed its headquarters on Red Branch Road in Columbia sometime in the latter part of last year, could not be reached yesterday. The company's phone number is disconnected, and its Web site has disappeared, leaving only the message, "Sorry, Altieri Homes is having difficulties."
Many new home builders have struggled over the past few years as the housing market has fallen. Some builders with high debt loads have found themselves unable to withstand big drops in market demand and property values. Meanwhile, bank financing has become scarcer.
Altieri's troubles appear to have worsened through the second half of last year. State court records show millions of dollars' worth of judgments against Altieri related to loan defaults, contracts and mechanic liens. Altieri Homes' state charter was forfeited in October, after it failed to file tax returns due April 15, 2007, according to the state Department of Assessments and Taxation.
And in March, Pennsylvania's attorney general filed a consumer protection lawsuit against Altieri Enterprises Inc., accusing the company and its president, Daren B. Altieri, and co-owners Greig G. Altieri and Frank D. Altieri of failing to complete construction, performing work in a shoddy manner, not honoring warranties and failing to pay subcontractors for materials and services.
