I think we should also take a look at FEMA. I do not agree to the above reasonable salaries for those workers. And I think they would still get the people they needed if they paid what the builders were paying before...because the workers should realize..'They Do Have A Job"! If not for FEMA paying them.. they may not otherwise have a job. And if Fema paid them their normal salary... HOW MUCH more money would they have to build more... FEED MORE..and so on.
We all need to contact our local and state governments to let our voice be heard. Pay them their normal salary and have more money to feed those who don't have right now.
And as for Ms.Johnson...I would find every way legally possible to make that builder build that house..now..as close to the original build date and was signed that he would start. A contract is a contract.. and he should know...People will be reading this...and hopefully they will not refer him if he does not hold up to his end of the contract..and the sooner the better..Our prayers go out to Ms.Johnson and her family for all they have been through and that God keep them all safe and help them through it all.

In this day and age, more and more, people are forgetting,before contractors there was the greatest builder of all,GOD. and also our country with of for fathers was also built with faith,and honesty. so mr.parker where will you fit in, years from now when this story about the johnson family is put in the archives of history? an honest person and company or just out for the buck.? There are 2 people who deserve to be pleased, Mrs Johnson, and God,who gave you your talent. I hope you remember that.

I'm a single family homebuilder and I have had 3 people this year not close on homes after signing a contract. Guesses as to why anyone? One was because they got cancer, another due to loss of a job and the other because 'it didn't feel right'. Did I sue them to follow through? It seems as though I should according to practically everyone who's blogged here because they signed that almighty contract with their own hand. The profit I'd make sure would go a long ways in making my mortgage payment and putting food on the table for my 11, 8 and 5 yr old boys. I didn't sue or arbitrate with any of them. In fact I'm praying for each of them that the the Lord will answer each of their prayers. I believe that if Ms. Johnson's situation is arbitrated that extenuating circumstances could be found, however, most arbitrators typically side with the buyers. This is obviously uncharted territory/circumstances though. As far as the other legal aspects:
1) if the builder has a decent contract, there should be no actual date for completion other than an estimated date. There are a few builders that do have specific dates with penalties if late, but they are few and far between for reasons exactly like this. No one can predict the weather and only a few large builders can manage the schedules of 30-40 different subcontractors.
2) Mine (and any other decent contract)has Act of God exclusions, how can I be made accountable (or anyone else for that matter) for something devastating that's out of our control?
3) Everyone on Ms Johnson's side says the builder's signed that contract and she's in the right. What if it does have the exclusions in it? Is she still in the right to sue him?
In the end, it all stinks, no doubt about it. I know how emotional people can be about a house, especially a 'dream house'. As far as litigation, I know that she'd spend more than it would be worth, unless she gets some of that low cost counsel, by the time it gets to the end. She'd be better off talking it out with Mr Parker and trying to get it done in a timely manner. Yeah, it won't be immediate but she's in a whole lot better position than so many other people. To force someone to do something that they don't want to do, let alone possibly lose a great deal of money in (maybe go bankrupt, which benefits absolutely no one) is not a good thing. You always want to stay on the good side of the builder. Yeah, you may have a contract and he will fulfill his side, but, believe me, I have heard of some outrageuos stories where there were some nasty things said and done that you will certainly want to avoid by just being nice, cordial, respectful and specific.

Hey, I'm having work done by Mr. Parker repairing the damage that Katrina did. He has been a very honest contractor and has returned my calls whether it's late at night , weekends or during the day. He has a good group of people doing the work and if I'm not available to be home with them I do leave them alone in my home. If Ms. Johnson feels that she is being taken advantage of maybe she should consider using another contractor. I went and priced an appliance before Katrina and now it has gone up by almost twice as much. You know the supply and demand theory.

TERRY DON'T GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAM. STICK THE CONTRACTOR WHERE IT HURTS, HIS POCKET. THE CONTRACT SHOULD BE MORE THAN BINDING, SEEK LEGAL ADVISE FIRST TIME CONSULTATION ARE NORMALLY FREE. MAKE HIM PERFORM ACCORDINGLY TO THE CONTRACT YOU SIGNED. GOOD PEOPLE GET THE SHORT END OF THE STICK WHEN DISASTERS STRIKE AND CONTRACTORS MAKE OUT LIKE BANDITS. DON'T GIVE UP GET MAD AND SEEK LEGAL ADVICE. ALSO PUT HIS NAME OUT TO THE PAPERS AND ANY PUBLIC FORUM YOU POSSIBLE CAN. IF HE THINKS HIS WORK IS BEHIND NOW WAIT TILL WORD OF MOUTH GETS OUT. I'LL SAY A PRAYER FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY TONIGHT. GOOD LUCK

Okay there is a contract. Whether it has any provisions in it for cancellation or revision due to acts of God is unknown to all these people yammering on about what the conract means;and further, unless they have a law license in that state, they don't know if the common law implies such terms in a contract.

Tell her to sue - whatever. She will spend $20,000 - 30,000 on legal fees to go to trial. This isn't a car accident where some lawyer will take it on a "you only pay if you win basis." This is a contract case and there is no insurance companies with deep pockets - just a small businessman who can file for bankruptcy. She will not get an award of legal fees in a contract case - she eats it. She can't sue to make him personally build the house - all she can do is sue for the cost difference of having someone else build the house. One can not sue to force someone else to provide personal services.

To Sammie Haskins in Georgia. The "best" law firms in Georgia don't do pre-paid legal services for individuals. No pre-paid legal services group is going to take on a client/member for $26 per month and do what would be $20,000-30,000 worth of legal work. Not happening. Those plans stick to the simple 'in office', small claims and traffic court stuff.

Both parties need to compromise - her as to when the house can be built and perhaps the size to bring costs down; and him as to when work can start based upon availability of labor and perhaps a lower profit.

How do I know this? I'm a retired lawyer who did contract litigation.

say girl keep the faith it will all come together talk to god he will help you can bet on that keep your head up auntte love Douglas

I donot think that the problem is with the builder orwith Mrs. Johnson I think that it is with the government allowing the price goughing, on appliances,building materials anything related to Katrina you have all the outof town builders,taking most of the jobs from the local people. If this was corrected you would not have this problem of over charging.

I can understand both sides. Under the circumstances, to be fair to all, the use of a arbitrator could be a way to look into both sides and come up with a solution to this problem. Both sides would have to agree to take the decision of the arbitrator. I feel Ms. Johnson is not being realistic that the contractor has to be able to make a profit to stay in business. If he goes by the original price, he will not have enough to pay his employees.

I have known Aaron Parker for years now. He is one of the most brutally honest people I have ever known. I spoke with him about this matter. He told me that he "spoke with the Johnsons several times and he'd spoken with Mr. Johnson who failed to tell his wife he'd called." When he reached Ms. Johnson AFTER this article was published Ms. Johnson gave him this information and when he told her that he had NOT received any unanswered calls from her, she replied that "I called your cellphone, but I didn't leave a message. I thought you would see my ID on your caller Identification." Mr. Parker receives a huge volume of calls a day and can't identify someone without their leaving a message. Sometimes we have to see both sides of the problem before we make judgments concerning whether there is even a dispute. Mr. Parker does quality work at a reasonable price. He always has; he always will. And I'm sure that he will do the same for the Johnsons.

As a carpenter and contractor for many years, I can see how confusing this contract might be to someone who has not risked their livelihood in the construction business. There is never a guarantee of a profit in construction.

I suggest that anyone who thinks $13 an hour in construction is a great wage ought to work framing a house on a 100 degree day with no health insurance, no benefits, and a day to day job. Throw in that most contractors don't have workers comp, and you have the brutal reality of construction in the South.

There is a great certainty that building codes in Waveland will be far more strict. Believe me, this is going to happen in much the same way it was forced in Florida.

No more walls secured to foundations with cut nails or simply gravity. No more toenailed roof trusses. No more roof sheathing secured by staples. Folks, these are standard techniques in the real world where codes are weak or inspectors do a drive by inspection.

I don't know anything about prevailing codes in Waveland, but things will certainly change before any new permits are issued.

This is a no win situation. Members of my family used to live in Pass Christian until Camille left them with a slab of concrete. There is no answer.

Terri, be encouraged and pray. God is in control. Mr. Parker, I hope you will find peace in your heart. Make a phone call to reconcile your differences and come to an agreement. I'm sure God would be pleased with reconciliation. There is a message in this situation. Do you get it!!!! God bless

You know, I pretty much read everyone's comments and to me, it's only the last few that make any sense - from cliff on down. You have to have both sides of the story to make a reasonable conclusion because it is the natural inclination to slant information in your own favor. The reason Ms. Johnson doesn't want a new contractor is because it would cost her so much more. She wouldn't get a new contractor unless she scaled back the size of the house. Be extremely grateful that the new house isn't gone and you're stuck with a $160,000 mortgage and no house. Then you would be declaring bankruptcy. Obviously, Mr. Parker is good contractor or he wouldn't have been in business this long. Take a step back and think about the whole situation. Maybe he's doing work for someone who is in an even worse situation than yours. Your current home may be small, but at least you have a place. Be patient and you will be rewarded - at least until the next hurricane blows away your "Dream House".

I too lost a home, car, pottery studio and all of my possessions on Waveland Avenue. I bought the house in January of 2005. My partner spent five years remodeling it when time and money allowed. It is now gone. It was our dream also. He is a building contractor. We are now on property we owned in Kiln, MS., in a RV and without electricity. We are lucky. We can rebuild. But guess what...we can not rebuild what we had because of the enormous increase in cost of building supplies. The cost of concrete just went up (again) and will go up again in January. We are going to pour our slab NOW to save the $1000.00 that it would add to our cost in January. Not all building contractors are wealthy. They too are dealing with a whole new ball game after Katrina, and many of them have also lost everything they have.

A contract is nice, but if Katrina wipes you out it is just another piece of paper.

Mrs Johnson
3rd Generation Waveland? Stick by your instincts terri.Hurrican season is far from over. So ones discessions are pretty much made within that very moment.Some has to hang in there; along with you terri, there appears to quit afew.Thats good..Just don't go the with the rapids, have to think about family..Tis part of the hurri..'s you or anyone cannot replace..gee!! that is soooo spooky!well, bless you and your family.. Thanks for sharing, my pryers are with you and yours and anyone else working through it.

I have known Mr. Parker my ENTIRE life (30 yrs). He is one of the most honest men I know. You Ms. Johnson don't have a clue. He wants to build your dream home but things are not as they were before Katrina. You lost one home already and you could've lost your new home as well. There are no permits being issued in your hometown. From Louisiana to Florida everyone is dealing with the wonderful aftermath Katrina has left us. YOU are not the only one needing a home. EVERYONE needs homes. My entire family has no home or even a tiny FEMA trailer. What we are grateful for is for each other. You should count your blessings when you wake up and see your children's faces and be grateful that you will get your home. He told you it will need some time and you need to have PATIENCE something everyone has and fails to use when they want something done right away instead of when it can be done. You said you've called him and he hasn't returned your calls. TRY LEAVING A MESSAGE. I can assure you that he will return your phone call.

Mrs. Johnson may want to rethink this contractor. If she forces him to build her home at the original cost, the quality of the home may be compromised. If he tries to recoup costs by purchasing lower grade products or substandard material. Even cutting back on the amount of nails and screws can compromise a building. Maybe they can come to an agreement to void the contract and she can put her dream home on hold for a while. But I’m sure she will find any contractor will be more costly after the events of this past storm season. She was not the only victim of Hurricane Katrina. However she should be grateful that she at least has a trailer to live in. Look at the people in Pakistan, after the devastating earthquake, they are facing a hard winter and they don’t even have tents to cover them. Some of the people in the mountain areas haven’t even seen medical help come in, no food, no water and it’s been months since that disaster.

Try to be thankful for what you have and not so selfish about what you want.

As I read the beginning of this bolg I was on the side of Mrs. Johnson but as I read further I saw that there is always two sides to a story. Both parties know what they have and have not done and should take some time to reflect on the situation. If Mr. Parker IS help a less fortunate family (which might or might not be the case) this is what being an american and a chistian is all about, helping those in their time of need. Mrs. Johnson you have a home.... Many are still staing in shelters, please be thankful for what you have, again this is what being an American and a christian is all about. There are little children who lost their parents in this tragedy, your children still have theirs, you have SO MUCH to be thankfull for. Good things come to those who wait. Mr. Parker and Mrs. Johnson, please look deep inside your hearts and consider your positions. Mr. Parker if you are the honest contractor your reputation of many years has proven, you will honor your contract to the best of your ability and Mr. Johnson, you can not expect Mr. Parker to loose his lively hood and possibly his home for YOUR dream home. You both know in your hearts what needs to be done, and I pary God guides you in your decisions.

To the johnson family i sincerely hope that you will get your ''dream home built. Also at your original price the gas prices here in va. is going down more each week and so is all the other things that sky rocketed doing this crises,GOD is so good)and Mr. parker i sincerely hope that you find it in your heart to at least talk with the ''johnson family you all could come to some type of an agreement. may God bless you all in this matter.

I also agree with Ms. Johnson. A contract is a contract and if it was sighned she and her family should have that house built at the original price quoted at the time of the signing of the contract. IF the prices would be lower would this contract still build there house and give them a refund? I DOUBT THAT. Afterall these people have been through they need to have that house built and to be able to enjoy for all that they have been thru.

Good luck to both you and your contractor. As a lawyer, I know that these disputes arise in building all the time---labor changes, subs don't do as promised, and all kinds of things that make a contractor end up cutting corners so as not to go broke. Here, though, I doubt that any permits pulled before the storm are valid, and it is really hard to get new permits now while waiting to see just what type of requirements may come into place---I wish you much luck, it sounds like your contractor is willing to work with you----aren't you glad that he hadn't just finished, leaving you with no house, a big mortgage, and the messy insurance issues most of us are now dealing with? I am sure you will end up with your new house, but being mad at your contractor for situations over which he has no control won't help. Good luck, I bet you will end up with a nicer house than expected---and remember the low interest loans out there with the SBA--you could end up with more house for smaller payments! Pam West

This is an act of God. Is he expected to bankrupt himself, put himself out of business to honor a contract based on prices pre hurricane? The bank needs to rewrite the financing to reflect the new costs. I dont work for free, none of you work for free, and neither should he! Get real people, he's not trying to scam extra money out of her, there are new building guidelines set up by the state now. That alone will raise the cost of her dream home. Never mind fema being stupid with our tax money and over paying people to do work. She has options, she's just too overwhelmed to realize it. Frankly I feel for the contractor. Being in the industry myself, I know what happens after these storms. The guy you were paying ten dollars an hour to last week to do foundations, now wants twenty dollars an hour! This is not the contractors fault. If she waited this long for her dream home wouldn't it be prudent to go back to the bank, rework the loan, and wait a little longer. Pam West is correct about the SBA

Well for one thing it is just like the democrates to jump on the republicans in a time like this. Do you think it was the Presidents fault that Katrina hit. No!! Do you think that it was the governments fault that Katrina hit. No!!! It was there lack of response and help that continues to hurt the devastated areas. On the other hand they weren't prepared for this kind of disaster. Who new? On the other hand FEMA has a lot to answer for in this instance!
For one thing he is bound by a contract! The other thing there are way more time limits put on building homes than you may think. Just because that guy doesn't have many doesn't mean there aren't allot of them. Like if you go through a bank, sometimes there are time limits on getting your home built.
Ok allot of people say that he will go broke if he builds Mrs. Johnsons home. You aren't looking at the big picture here are you!
For one- He has so many jobs now that he probably won't know what to do with the money he is making.
For two- he signed a contract and had allready started the process of getting ready to build. The hurricane was allready headed this away or suspected to on the Friday before it hit. Um HELLO!
For three- He signed a contract!!!! Mrs. Johnson should have been the first one he contacted if possible. If not he should have contacted her as soon as he could and if allready working on another contract with someone else explained this to her and worked out the problems with the rising costs of materials with her instead of making a ruckus about building for 160,000.
For four- Her home should have been the next one on the list for construction after he finished the last one, because he can't hold off on construction for anyone else, while waiting for someone to get home. Though he should have had a contact number for her. He should have been able to contact her. After all he was starting to build her home the Friday before the hurricane.
For five-He should have explained about the permits to her the day he got in touch with her. I'm not sure about permits, if they still hold after a hurricane that has destroyed so much, especially in her area.
There should have been more communication on his part!
Believe me he is making plenty of money on the rebuilding of homes in the area so I really don't see the problem with building her home for what was originally stated.
As for anyone that has been negative about Mrs. Johnsons part in all of this. You don't have to tell her she should be thankful for her family or anything else. Because I know first hand that she is! And why don't you guys come on down and live in all of this wreckage and live in a Fema trailor for 5 to 6 months with kids and lets have your point of view on how all of this should take place.
To the one who lost her 2 week old home. I am praying for you and I hope that everything works out for ya'll.
God bless

I have seen the devastation of the hurricane has done to peoples lives and cant imagine living through it.Good luck in getting your house built as i live in australia and we do not have hurricanes here.

Life is seldom fair and never easy.