New Arizona bill would make it harder for homeowners to sue for repairs

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - "Let's say you have a construction defect and it's going to cost $30,000 to repair, and you have a home builder that just decides 'I'm not gonna repair it.'" Michelle Lind said. "You're going to have to hire an attorney and go through the legal process."

That's what happened to Marta Grabowska. Her north Valley home became a nightmare after cracks in her floor became gaping holes in her foundation.

"It is hard to live like this," she said.

After a decade-long fight, her case is finally settled, but under House Bill 2507, she would not be able to recover attorney's fees in her case.

"It is not fair because it is not our fault," she said. "That is builder fault and they should take care of this."

Critics call the bill a huge disadvantage for Arizona homeowners.

"Most people that go into buying a new home, they're looking for a place to raise their family, they're not thinking about what happens if there's a defect and who's going to correct it," Lind said. "They assume it's going to be corrected.

But lawmakers say the real problem is the frivolous lawsuit.

"They're doing these free home evaluations to find perceived slights, perceived problems, and then they'll get enough of them together and then they can go to the home builder and say, 'we're going to sue you for millions of dollars,'" Rep. Paul Boyer said.

Marta doesn't want a million dollars, she just wants her dream home back.

"They ignore me," she said.