One issue for homeowners who seek to recover for poor residential construction is the issue of whether a judgment will be collectible should they get one through the litigation process in Virginia. Lack of the ability to collect can be particularly damaging to a homeowner when a particularly dishonest, or more likely cash strapped, contractor takes a deposit or a payment and then takes off for parts unknown. Such a situation can lead to a homeowner having a partially constructed home and no way to recoup the money based upon this dishonest conduct, even in the instance where the homeowner gets a default judgment for fraud.
As a hedge against such an issue, the Virginia General Assembly and the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR) created the contractor recovery fund from which a homeowner who is the subject of dishonest conduct by a contractor can recovery up to $20,000.00. This is a great thing, right?
