Saskatchewan family left in legal limbo following water damages to $1.4M home

WATCH: A Saskatchewan family is in legal limbo following water damages to a $1.4 million home. Mick Favel has the story.

A Saskatchewan couple are stuck in a legal backlog as they wait for answers on who is liable for over $1 million dollars in damages to their home.

Scott and Jaime Schoff had their dream home built in Estevan in 2014. The construction bill for the home totalled $1.4 million.

Peterbuilt Construction Ltd was the general contractor for the project.

During a rainstorm in spring 2021, Jaime was in a section of their home and discovered water coming up through a floorboard.

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The damage was able to be mitigated by a subcontractor who helped build the home.

A few weeks later, after another rainstorm, the issue returned.

More examination determined the water was coming through the exterior wall of the home and traveling through the floor.

“We decided to peel some stone off the exterior of the house. The stone fell right off. It was rotted out,” said Scott Schoff.

“The [oriented strand board] was like oatmeal. You could stick your fingers in the OSB, and through the studs. We discovered we had a bigger issue.”

Other exterior sections of the home used the stone pattern where the leak was coming from. After dismantling these sections, it revealed the same decaying condition.

Peter Schmidt from Peterbuilt Construction Ltd was contacted about the damages. A few weeks later, a person was sent out to inspect the damages.

Schoff said after this, they were unable to contact Schmidt again. This led them to file a claim against the company for failing to comply with 2010 National Building Code during the home construction.

“We took legal action and have been stuck there for the last four years. We still don’t have a resolution,” said Schoff.

The couple hired an engineer to come in and assess the damages. The final report declared the house as unsafe to live in.

The report also revealed the blueprints of the home were not followed during construction. Although the spray foam insulation was not installed correctly, it seems to be a last line of defense keeping mold from entering the home.

Weather barrier stripping was not used during the installing of the windows. It is possible all the windows of the home were installed without the stripping.

So far, over $75,000 has been spent on mitigation of the damages. The couple has spent roughly $100,000 in legal fees, and it’s estimated that another $150,000 will need to be spent before a conclusion can be reached.

It is estimated to cost $1.7 million to fix all damages to the home – which is $300,000 more than it cost to build the home originally.

According to a statement of defence, Peterbuilt Construction Ltd denies each and every allegation made against the company regarding the claim by the Schoffs.

The legal document asserts the homeowners failed to maintain the home in a reasonable state of repair. It goes on to say there was a failure on the homeowners’ part to take adequate and preventative steps for water seepage.

The statement goes on to say the company stands by the completed work of the home and requests that the lawsuit be dismissed.

Peterbuilt Construction Ltd has also filed a third-party claim against two of its subcontractors, who have also filed their own third-party statements of defence. Both companies deny any wrongdoing and ask for the third party claim to be dismissed.

For now, the home sits with exposed walls inside, and paper covering sections of the exterior to keep out rain and snow.

“We are scared to go on holidays or do anything sometimes. If there is a storm, is the house going to be okay?” Jaime Schoff asked.

Schoff said the legal process has gone on long enough and decisions need to be made soon.

“We are sitting here four years later. Something needs to change with the system because we can’t even get to pre-trial,” Schoff explained.

CTV News spoke with Schmidt about the situation, but he declined to speak on the matter as it is still before the courts.