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You’ve just built a new home or remodeled your existing residence, but the builders simply did a poor job. What are your options in New Jersey?

The New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act

For homeowners in New Jersey, the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act provides specific remedies when contractors provide shoddy or substandard services or violate specific statutory requirements. Under the law, if a home improvement contractor fails to live up to the terms of an agreement or violates statutory requirements under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, the contractor may be liable for treble damages, or three times the amount assessed by the jury, as well as reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs incurred. A technical violation may also be a valid defense to a contractor’s claim for money.

A homeowner in New Jersey may seek compensation for any defect or deviation from the terms of a construction contract, including:

• Any design, architectural or engineering failures
• Building code violations
• Substandard plumbing, electrical or heating/cooling installation or design
• Leaks in basements, windows, roofs and doors
• Structural defects in walls, foundations, roofs, doors or windows
• Mold and mildew

Further, if the contractor fails to comply with New Jersey Consumer Fraud statutes and regulations, related to specific contractual provisions and business practices, a homeowner may obtain treble damage relief. Therefore a homeowner is wise to consult with counsel when dealing with a home improvement gone bad.

The New Home Warranty and Builder’s Registration Act (NHWA)

Put into law in 1977, the NHWA requires that a builder registers with the state before construction of a new home. The NHWA requires that a warranty applies to any new home for one year—the warranty covers workmanship, materials, mechanical systems, electrical and plumbing installations, appliances and fixtures, and major structural defects. The mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems are warranted for two years and major structural defects are covered for 10 years. Do not delay in making a claim as the time periods are critical.

Contact the Law Office of Jared M. Lans

We offer a free phone consultation to every new client. To set up a call, send us an e-mail or call us at 201-457-9400. Evening and weekend appointments are available upon request. We accept Visa and MasterCard.

When you purchase a residence in a planned community, whether it’s a town home, a condominium or a single family home, you will probably be required as a part of your purchase to belong to and abide by certain rules set by a homeowners’ association (HOA). The documents you sign will likely include by-laws, as well as what are known as covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs).

By-Laws

Your homeowners’ association will most likely be established as a nonprofit entity. Under state business laws, you’ll have a governing board of directors, as well as a set of rules that govern the operation of the nonprofit corporation. Those rules are called by-laws. They don’t impose any restrictions on homeowners, but address how the homeowners’ association conducts its business.

For example, the by-laws will typically identify:

• The frequency of homeowner association meetings
• The voting rights of HOA members
• The various offices and the duties of those offices
• The number of people that must be on the board of directors

Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions

These are the rules that govern the actions of homeowners in a planned community. These are legally binding contracts and are typically recorded in the county offices, so that you can find out what the restrictions are before you purchase a home. The restrictions can address almost any use of your home or property. Some common restrictive covenants in planned communities include:

• Choice of color for exterior paint or siding
• Types of fences that are permissible (if at all)
• Whether or not residents may have visible antennas or satellite dishes
• Whether or not vehicles may be parked on the street or in a driveway
• How homeowners must collect and dispose of garbage

We Offer a Free Initial Phone Consultation
To schedule a conference with attorney Jared M. Lans, send us an e-mail or call us at 201-457-9400. Evening and weekend appointments are available upon request. We accept Visa and MasterCard.

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The state of New Jersey takes home improvement construction fraud seriously. Under the provisions of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, any loss that a homeowner incurs because of fraud by a home improvement contractor can be tripled in a lawsuit to recover damages. In addition, the statute allows victimized homeowners to be reimbursed for attorney fees and any costs associated with filing legal action.

When the fraud occurs on property that is part of a homeowners association, though, it’s more than just the homeowner who is at risk. Partially completed improvements or poorly done work on such a home can have an impact on the value of all property in the association and can make it more challenging to market the community. What can a homeowner’s association do to protect itself and its members from unscrupulous contractors?

• Make it a rule that any contractor working on any structure in the community be approved by the homeowner’s association before beginning any type of work, including demo. Ask contractors for references and be willing to conduct some due diligence on a potential contractor.
• Provide a list of pre-approved contractors to your members—This can benefit everyone. Most homeowners don’t relish the idea of trying to find a contractor. The homeowner’s association can ensure that all approved contractors are familiar with all covenants and building restrictions, so there’s no worry about non-conforming practices. Homeowners can also relax, knowing that the contractor they’ve chosen will abide by association rules.
• Require all contractors to provide all relevant licenses before beginning any work
• Ask for copies of all relevant insurance policies from contractors
• Advise homeowners not to pay for any work until it is completed—This is the most common type of fraud, where a homeowner makes a down payment and the contractor disappears. If the contractor says he needs money for materials, advise the homeowner to purchase the materials directly and schedule delivery. If the contractor disappears, the homeowner can return the materials or make them available to a new contractor.

Contact the Law Office of Jared M. Lans

We offer a free phone consultation to every new client. To set up a call, send us an e-mail or call us at 201-457-9400. Evening and weekend appointments are available upon request. We accept Visa and MasterCard.

AV-Rated under Martindale-Hubbell’s Peer Review Rating System

Instituted by Donate Life America in 2003, National Donate Life Month (NDLM) is an annual event that devotes an entire month to encouraging organ, eye, and tissue donation as well as celebrating the donors who make life-saving transplants possible.

Currently, there are an estimated 123,000 men, women and children awaiting organ transplants, 5000 of them here in New Jersey. Thousands more are in need of tissue and cornea transplants. Sadly, 22 people die every single day waiting for an organ.

There is a shortage of registered organ donors. Only 1/3 of New Jersey residents are registered organ and tissue donors. There are many reasons for this shortage. One reason is that, unlike many European countries that adopt an opt-out policy, a person living in the United States must opt-in to be an organ donor. This can be done very easily, and takes only a few minutes. Go to www.NJSharingNetwork.org to register.

Another reason people don’t register is that they believe they are too old to donate; that their tissues and organs are of no use. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, there have been donors in their 90’s!

Some people may believe that organ and tissue donation is contrary to their religion; however, this may not be the case. In fact, every major religion in the US supports organ and tissue donation as one of the highest expressions of charity, compassion and generosity.

Anyone concerned that one’s family or estate may be burdened with financial obligations as a result of their donation should not be. The family pays only for medical expenses incurred prior to death and the usual costs associated with funeral arrangements.

Why should you register to become an organ and tissue donor? Organ donation saves lives. It puts an end to patients’ pain and suffering. It gives patients a second chance at happy, healthy, productive lives. It returns them to their loved ones.

Make your wishes known to your loved ones. Don’t leave this decision to loved ones during a time that will most assuredly be one of confusion and grief. Have a living will drawn up as part of your estate plan. Your kindness will live on.

Feel free to contact Jared M. Lans law offices at 201-457-9400 to schedule an appointment to review your will and living will as part of your estate plan.

For more information on National Donate Life Month, organ and tissue donation, or to register as a donor, go to www.njsharingnetwork.org or www.donatelifenj.org

Five local contractors are among a dozen facing either criminal charges or civil violations as the result of a sting by state and Bergen County authorities.

Read the Full Article at NJ.com

In January, 2011, New Jersey enacted revisions to the New Jersey Construction Lien Law ( N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-1, et seq.) including several significant changes in the residential and tenant contexts. Most of these changes benefit contractors, subcontractors and suppliers entitled to lien rights. This article focuses on the most critical of those changes and the importance of implementing business practices to assure lien rights are preserved when appropriate.

Most significantly, the time for filing a construction lien on a residential project has been enlarged. A claimant must now file a Notice of Unpaid Balance and Right to File Lien (“NUB”) within sixty (60) days from when it last performed work or supplied materials. This extends the time frame by 30 days, a significant improvement to claimants that were often either prematurely required to file a claim, thereby heightening tensions with the homeowner, or foregoing the right to do so altogether. The new law provides time for a “cooling off” period to resolve disputes without unnecessarily forcing the issue.

After the NUB is filed, the claimant has ten (10) days within which it must serve a demand for arbitration in order to determine the legitimacy and amount of the claim. Ultimately, if the arbitrator determines the right to a lien exists and sets the amount, the construction lien must be filed within 120 days from when the claimant last performed work or supplied materials, an extension of the former 90 day period. Claimants should take note of these changes in the time requirements and be sure to document the last day work was performed or material supplied to ensure the right to file does not lapse due to the passage of time.

The new law makes other positive changes in the residential context helping to avoid inconsistent arbitration awards in the event of more than one claim on the same project. Multiple lien claims may now be joined in a single construction lien arbitration proceeding, with if possible, the same arbitrator. The new law requires arbitrators to consider all previous proceedings relating to the same construction project.

Claimants must also be aware of one negative change regarding the new definition of what is considered residential, which requires that the NUB procedure to be followed rather than the less stringent commercial lien claim scheme. Now any mixed use property that includes residential units is now deemed a “residential” construction project. Thus, knowing whether a project ordinarily considered commercial may be considered residential due to mixed use in the development becomes of critical importance, and thus care in assessing whether the project is a mixed use site at the outset of a job are of critical importance.

The revisions include clarifications with regard to when a lien against a landowner may be pursued when the work was done for a tenant. In most contexts, a claimant prefers to lien the owner’s property rather than simply the tenant’s interest in their lease. Prior law provided that a lien could attach to the owner interest only if the landlord gave written permission for the improvements. The revisions still allow a lien claim against the tenant’s interest and somewhat expand the right to lien the owner interest which is limited to a few circumstances: (a) if the owner authorizes the construction in writing and provides that the ownership interest is subject to a lien; (b) if the landlord agrees to pay (or has paid) the majority of the costs in writing; and (c) if the lease agreement provides that the owner interest is subject to a lien for the improvement. It is suggested that the a copy of the lease be reviewed prior to construction, not only to provide information as to whether such lien rights exist, but also to address additional concerns relative to a tenant’s rights to construct in the leasehold.

One final note: Claimants should be aware that new forms were created for the NUB, lien claim, and all related documents. The new lien forms help to clarify how the claim is calculated, so that the lien equals only the unpaid amount due the claimant for work actually performed. Since the revisions to the law take effect immediately, the new forms are to be used now and claimants should become familiar with them.

The above described revisions to the lien law represent a few of the more important changes which were enacted to correct perceived deficiencies in the prior lien law. Contractors, subcontractors and suppliers should familiarize themselves with these changes and adopt business practices consistent with the above suggestions to ensure they take full advantage of the protections afforded by the lien law.

Jared M. Lans is a lawyer in Hackensack, New Jersey. His firm engages in corporate and commercial transactions and litigation, with a focus on the construction sector, and wealth preservation through business succession and estate planning.