Richmond American Homes Reviews

Richmond builds the exact same home differently (e.g., garage is finished in one, but not the next). Then they claim that code does not require it be finished. All of which may be true, but why am I be punished for making a down payment when the lot is released. Then my neighbor comes along gets the garage finished and pays less for their house. Only one example of how inconsistent and unprofessional Richmond can be.

A couple things, first the sales representative was horrible, total lack of response to multiple inquires, I felt many times he blew us off. As far as the home, I’m mostly happy but there are a few issues I would expect a seasoned builder to get right. First not all studs are 16” on center, a big problem I noticed when mounting brackets for TVs in what I consider logical places. Some I found were 17, some at 21, very frustrating. Also electrical outlets, same with TV locations, they are not center in walls where they should be logically. This shows poor care in craftmanship

Buying a house is supposed to be exciting blah blah....Well buying a Richmond Homes was the absolute worse experience I've had. If we wouldn't of been left homeless I would have walked away from this purchase. As I get settled in and what not ive noticed a lot of issues. In the RV garage, the wall outlets are not at the same height level. The sheetrock edges arent on 2x4s. The RV garage has a whole 3 outlets in the 43 foot garage. They left the plastic on the over head lights, when the garage opener was installed they took the power cord and went around the frame to plug it in, this caused the light cover to not close. The back deck was a total waste, it was 3x5 or so. No stairs to the back yard from the deck which was over 24 inches high. When I brought this up the fix they went with was to add a complete railing around the deck. By doing this we had no access to the yard till I removed it. When the wind blows the inside doors rattle. ... More

I was told my house isn’t worth the asking price and it could appraise for less. It did not. They used this as a sales tactic to convince me to buy at an inflated price. They offer incentives but it’s a far stretch to get them to utilize all of them. Tried negotiating with them for weeks and ultimately gave in to them because we were tired of their games. They didn’t make the sales experience enjoyable. Defects started to show close to closing. The assistant superintendent was giving push back about work being completed. The actual superintendent was extremely helpful and the warranty company has been responsive. In the end, I learned a lot of buyer bewares to look out for. You will experience it almost anywhere with a newly built community. I just wanted to express my dissatisfaction with this specific community. ... More

The house has been ok. No serious issues.Mostly normal new house issues. It would have been nice if there had been at least one pest control treatment as the spiders are out of control. However, with exception of financing part of Richmond, no one else cares about follow up or the buyer. They expect you to meet their schedule for every step and act like they are doing you a favor selling you a home. There is generally no respect for the owner at any point: be prepared to continually call or text if there are issues immediately following move in.

Quality of work is lacking, during initial inspection many items were brought up. During the final inspection most of the initially mentioned issues had not been resolved. We already have a list for about 30 items that will need to be addressed during the 30 day inspection. Most minor, but a handful of issues are pretty big.The assistant superintendent that did the walkthroughs did not seem very knowledgeable and seemed rushed. He also tried gaslighting us about and issue, saying the shower door is intended to only swing one way, which is incorrect, the issue is the alignment and or the tile floor. Overall not the best experience. ... More

Many problems exist with the new home. Builder cut corners and forgot to do many things properly. Responsiveness has not gone well.

Home buying process was not good. Their lender was terrible and I had zero communication with sales rep declined and a few things he described were inaccurate. He also didn't tell me about the upcoming inventory. Their site project manager was the saving grace. Two weeks after signing we had a huge leak, thankfully we were connected to a plumber and they stopped it but it took builder a month to fix under the warranty (thank goodness for a warranty). Having been here in the house for a month I think there the ceilings are horrendous and look like we've been here longer some of the materials used do give cheap too. Would I purchase another home them? I don't think I would. I'd try another first knowing which better questions to ask ... More

I would like to write a good review in regards to issues in my home that still need to be resolved but unfortunately I have not had a good experience as of now. After the inspection, I was told that whatever needed to be fixed would be fixed within the first 30 days of the closing date. It is now past the 30 days and i have nothing fixed.

I don’t have any comment at this time

There were multiple issues with this experience. Some minor and some major. While the floorplan had some great points, it also has some detractors. The master bedroom door to the bathroom opening to the same space as the shower door so they can’t be opened concurrently was a gross oversight. We will likely need to change the shower door or the door to the master bath to a barn door. Front door is only 32 inches. No person with a wheelchair could buy or live in this house without modification. The placement of the handrail on the steps to the front door removes 4 inches of usable space on the steps. The patio was on average 20 inches above grade but the company cheaped out and did not put any sort of steps from the patio to the ground. There is certainly a risk of injury trying to go up and down. There was a lot of construction debris left on the lot and in the crawl space. Approximately 20 items submitted on the 30 day warranty request. The most egregious was that the appraiser appears to have been in the pocket of the builder. My realtor did due diligence on comps and was able to show the house was over valued in the appraisal based on other closings of the exact same model in the neighborhood. The appraiser used none of the comps but instead used future closings not closed by and comps 7 miles away, not current relevant closings. Worst diligence in appraisal ever. This is not the fiirst house I have ever bought. Richmond refused to even consider it. The only reason we closed was so as to not lose the earnest money. This was a VA loan and this appraiser was VA approved. The issue was taken up with the VA and they made excuses for him. There is no doubt this appraiser was in the tank for the builder. ... More

Our home required removal of a shower pan and some tile/drywall. When the drywall was removed, a water bottle full of urine was found. I’m happy to provide a picture for proof. Overall, the craftsmanship of the home has been lacking. We’ve had to contact the warranty representative frequently. It’s disappointing considering what was paid for the home. We already have concerns about its’ longevity.

Richmond American employees at the build site did not appear to care about the buyer’s experience. Each week, we would receive an update on work that would be done the following week and each week, it was the same work. In other words, for 5-6 weeks, absolutely no progress was made on our build. We had to involve our realtor several times to follow up and go onsite to speak to employees. The superintendent Nick created a lack of trust with Richmond and even after move-in, a several items from our final walk through have not been completed including items that violate local code (international code 504.7, IRC R311.7). It was only when the project manager, Jim, got involved about 6 weeks before move-in that we finally started to see traction. Jim truly cared about our experience and was the saving grace to the whole process. Despite that, our close date got pushed out 4 weeks which is a lot of time to be displaced between homes. ... More

Closed 12/31/24 with a list of items that were not completed and required additional work to be completed. Caught during home inspection or visual inspction before closing. Provided itemized list with pictures. Unfortunately, little to no response for these items to be completed.

The sales person Lia was excellent to deal with. The construction manager was responsive 90% of the time of the time but still could not for full fill my request to fix the many issues. The limited features provided at this price point was extremely disappointing. The laundry is on the first floor away from all the bedroom, not practical or convenient. There are useless upper and lower cabinets in the Master bedroom. A terrible waste of space and functionality. No under cabinet lighting in the kitchen! At this price point you would expect that at a minimum!

While I would like to commend our sales representative, Claudia, for her professionalism and assistance throughout the home-buying process, I encountered several issues with the quality of my Richmond American Home (RAH). Just for starters, the floors are not level. The flooring throughout the home is uneven, creating both aesthetic and functional problems. Also, the tile for both bathrooms were substituted, but the grout used was the color for the original tile...this should have been thought out by the builder and designer who substituted the tile, but it was not. Now I have lovely tile that is offset with ugly grout. Another issue, is the countertops for the bathrooms were misaligned over the sinks, which is both visually unappealing and reminds us everyday of the lazy "craftsmanship" RAH touts. These issues do not reflect the high standards I expected from a reputable builder like RAH. As a homeowner, I relied on their commitment to quality and craftsmanship to ensure my investment provided me long-term satisfaction, and I feel like I was duped. Recommend if you buy from RAH, you do your homework and look at other builders and their "craftsmanship". RAH needs better quality control of their contractors. Contractors should be customer focused and company awarded so they feel some sort of pride in their work and not just "get'er done and get out" leaving the homeowner to just deal with it. ... More

We purchased a home and did the final walkthrough etc and all was taken care from the list our inspector provided. Their was one issue that wasnt…water dispenser from fridge. We were told part had arrived and scheduled the technician to repair. Technician arrived no part was given to us and tech knew nothing about it. The technicians made several trips and still hasnt been fixed as of 11/25….moved in 10/11. My wife or I have had to take time away from work and be at the house each time. Appears to be no sense of urgency or desire to get this resolved. Lesson learned….always have issuues resolved before closing. ... More

When buying a home remotely from Richmond American Homes, I expected a certain level of support and care, especially as a buyer. Unfortunately, the experience has left much to be desired. I closed on my home without being present for the final walk-through or the first two weeks of ownership, trusting that all was in good condition. Shortly after moving in, I discovered that three trees had fallen on the property while I was absent. I asked the builder to stand them back up, which they did, but the trees quickly died. When I reached out to report this, hoping Richmond American Homes might assist with replacement, I was informed that they were not responsible for landscaping after closing. While technically accurate according to policy, it’s disappointing that Richmond American Homes wouldn’t make an exception or even offer guidance for a remote buyer. Having to replace trees that were never healthy from the start is frustrating and doesn’t seem fair, especially given the lack of options for someone who couldn’t oversee every step in person. A bit of flexibility and customer support could have made a significant difference. ... More

Take people request in consideration instead of ignoring right after you got funded.

After moving into the home I realized that all the appliances are very poor quality. My dishwasher was not working.. I had to call several times to get it fixed. not sure how it passed inspection. It is now fixed. The master bathroom doors are backwards. I have to get wet with cold water to turn the water on. Not a good experience. I expressed concern about this and I was told that it is correct. How is this possible? Who has to get wet with cold water every time you take a bath. Not happy about this… Landscaping issues on the back of the house it floods really bad. House gutters not installed correctly causing the back yard to flood. When I expressed concern with the flooding, I was told to contact my home insurance company if water gets in the house. I just moved to this home 30 days ago. I would think the landscaping issues would be fixed by the builder… I request my home light fixtures to be changed to black as it is in most homes in this neighborhood and I was told No. Not great experience so far beautiful neighborhood but home quality not the best it could be. ... More

We agreed to purchase this home while still under construction when a major leak under the slab was discovered. At that point along with other issues like the grading of the property where water collects around the foundation I no longer wanted to continue with the purchase because of potential problems in the future. In the agreement once they have your money they are not obligated to give it back to you even if the problem is on their end because they are supposed to fix it but the repairs done to my house were band-aid repairs that they won’t accept for themselves. Most of the blue tape repairs to be done was never complete and the tape was just removed but we had pictures before and after. I would recommend new buyers to do some type of inspection before agreeing to any contracts. I will end my rant here by saying I will not be buying another home with Richmond American in the future. ... More

THE BAD. Our house was filthy after closing. Workers used our bathrooms, broking promises by builder in regard to our driveway. Paint spots on carpet in every room. The tile floor had paint specks and excess grout and some type of adhesive spots. Bathroom counter top had silicone smudges all over them. THE GOOD, The neighborhood and residents are great. The house house has a good layout. The sales team and superintendent seem to care

To who it may concern. We were never offered coach lighting now we see homes with them, we ask for some outlets to moves up for easier TV viewing (Pre Dry-wall) and could not get a response on the additional moving of the outlets. We would've paid for the modification if we needed too. Lots of builder grade materials and now the homes are lower in price with more upgrades. Just not a very professional experience at all for the wife and I!!

Home not ready on time Inspection not allowed prior to close Incentives not clear punchlist items still not closed

We just purchased an Idaho Richmond American spec home. Although it was a spec home, we entered into a purchase contract just as the build began. The Richmond sales team was very friendly and reachable in those early days. We signed their contract and completed their down payment early. After that though, everything changed. Now the salesperson and project manager seemed to avoid us. Their prior promises really didn't seem to matter anymore. For example, one promise they made was that the build could be prioritized and the completion date advanced if we needed it. We needed it. Now though, the local Richmond team did the opposite. They seemed to de-prioritize our build. Often nobody worked on the house for days on end. The sales team became nearly unreachable. Once I was told 'if I have two dates to schedule anything, I always pick the later date!' No wonder progress slowed to a crawl. We came to feel the local team's goal was to encourage us to walk away, forfeiting our substantial down payment, and allow them to sell the house again to their next customer. On the day the property closed and we finally took possession (three weeks late), there were a few issues they promised to fix. Nearly a month later and with NO attempt from Richmond to address these concerns, the story repeats itself. They seem to be all about transactions and completely uninterested in relationships. Although the house itself seems fine, if you are considering a build with Richmond American, I would proceed with caution. Many of their verbal promises seem to be voided by their exceptionally long contract. That's my opinion. ... More