Now Steinberg is the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit filed in June 2005 in Orange County Superior Court asking the builder for at least $10 million to fix "improper design, construction and/or installation" of the homes.
After having the home inspected, Steinberg said, "It became clear that to ever fix the house, every window will have to be replaced, the walls will have to be taken down to the studs and, in essence, the house will have to be completely rebuilt."
According to the homeowners, the problems started in late 2004, when 100-year rains hit Orange County. They attribute the problems to improper drainage, faulty waterproofing and poor-quality materials.
Heidi Ambe and her husband paid $3.55 million for their home, which was built in 2001. When the water invaded, Ambe said, toxic mold grew inside the walls and her 18-month-old daughter became ill, appeared listless and was covered in a head-to-toe rash.
Taylor Woodrow officials initially said they would take care of it, but once they realized how big the problem was, Ambe said, "They rescinded our offer and said, 'We're sorry — you're going to have to sue us.' " The family moved out of the house in April 2005 and is now renting a place in Newport Beach.
To pay for a temporary home and reconstruction of their Newport Coast house, Ambe said she and her husband have been working extra hours.
"My poor husband — he's a plastic surgeon — he's having to do five surgeries a day … where typically it would be three," she said.
Taylor Woodrow spokeswoman Arianna Barrios at the builder's regional headquarters in Irvine would say only that the company does not comment on ongoing litigation.
