LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Million-dollar homes with million-dollar views of Lake Las Vegas are falling apart. That is what a group of homeowners and their attorney claim. They say their homes, built about five years ago, went up too quickly and now the ground below is shifting causing extreme damage. Only on FOX5, Kim Passoth got a firsthand look at the problems.
“They believe they bought a wonderful home and instead they bought a lemon,” that is what Attorney Norberto Cisneros who represents five homeowners in the Del Webb community of Lake Las Vegas built by PulteGroup told FOX5 while pointing out issues in a $1.3 million home. In the dining room, there’s massive crack.
“We can see inside the wall?,” Passoth questioned.
“Classic example of soils problems. You have cracking in the drywall… They have repaired it twice. It has come back each time, and it gets worse every time,” Cisneros explained. In the kitchen, the floor tiles are separating.
“If this is three to four years, what is this going to look like in ten years?,” Passoth asked Cisneros while standing in the kitchen.
“That’s obviously the concern and it’s getting worse,” Cisneros contended. In the backyard, there’s a crevice between the patio and the home.
“That’s along the entire back here in the patio… it’s completely moved away,” Cisneros stated.
“The fence is completely separated, and the wall is cracking as well,” Passoth noticed while walking through the backyard.
“If this goes, obviously an extreme safety hazard,” Cisneros asserted. For more than two decades, Cisneros has represented families in construction defect disputes with homebuilders.
“This is probably one of the worst cases I’ve ever seen… There are severe soils compaction problems out here. Basically, when they built this community, they gutted it out, took all the soils and they have to re-compact it before they build the homes on top of it. They have got to get that soil level and even… They did not compact the soils properly here,” Cisneros stated. Cisneros says all of his client’s home on a ridgeline overlooking the lake are on unstable ground. The homeowners Cisneros represents say the underground movement is destroying their homes slowly from below.
“My house is tilting an inch and 1/2 from the rear to the front… I’m very careful how I walk because everything is unstable and uneven and I can’t afford to fall,” revealed homeowner Willie Barron.
“You know that as each day goes by, a week goes by and things are moving… and it’s very disturbing because you know that your home is going to get worse,” confessed homeowner Larry Skow.
“The dream home has really kind of turned into a nightmare?,” Passoth asked.
“Dreams are shattered,” replied homeowner John Penn.
The homeowner who spoke with FOX5 worry an earthquake or monsoon storm could be catastrophic.
“If that happens and if it’s large enough that the wall will collapse… this house will go down and affect the houses below us,” Penn predicted.
Cisneros believes it is possible to stabilize the land but says it could be hundreds of thousands of dollars per home.
“You got to jack up the home and redo the soils which can be, in the you know, the $300,000 to $500,000 range,” Cisneros estimated.
Under Nevada law, before a homeowner can sue a builder for defective construction, they must give them notice. Then the builder can fix the issues, pay for repairs or deny responsibility within 90 days. Cisneros says that time is now up.
“What they said is we’re willing to do further investigation, which is not an appropriate response under NRS Chapter 40. We’re not even at a point where they’ve offered any repairs at all,” Cisneros claimed.
FOX5 shared all the problems we observed with the builder, PulteGroup, asking if they plan to help the homeowners. Their response:
“At PulteGroup, we stand behind the quality of homes we deliver. We are actively engaged with homeowners in assessing their concerns and addressing warranty-related repairs to their homes.”
Cisneros says other construction defect attorneys are working with other homeowners in the community, but he does not know how many homes are impacted. Cisneros says unless Pulte agrees to fix the issues in the properties of the clients he represents, a lawsuit will be filed. FOX5 will continue to keep you updated on what happens.
Copyright 2025 KVVU. All rights reserved.
