Home Builder Sues Homeowners Over Construction Dispute, Ironically Ends Up Owing Thousands

What started as a $360,000 home-building contract ended with the builder suing the homeowners for more money. Instead, the homeowners walked away with a $19,317.25 award.

According to the New Jersey Appellate Division, Mohamed Aly and Reham Abdelfattah hired MVN Homes in the autumn of 2014 to build a house in Millstone.

Their contract called for the home to be “substantially completed” within 250 days after construction began. Ultimately, however, it took 498 days before the couple received temporary approval to move in.

By then, they had already sold their previous home. The delay ended up leaving them spending $3,264 on temporary lodging for themselves as well as boarding their dog.

The Builder Sued For More Money

This conflict actually traces back several years. In March 2017, a state-appointed lien arbitrator approved a lien in the builder’s favor for $56,438, which the homeowners paid.

MVN then filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit that June, and the homeowners counterclaimed the following month. According to the New Jersey Appellate Division, the lawsuit “lingered on the docket for six-and-a-half years” as efforts to arbitrate or settle the dispute failed.

After a seven-day trial in 2024, the judge rejected MVN’s breach-of-contract claim. The court also found that the lengthy construction delay violated New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act.

That made the couple’s $3,264 loss eligible to be tripled to $9,792. The court added $9,525.25 in attorney’s fees and costs, bringing the award to $19,317.25.

Appeals Court Upholds Homeowners’ Win

MVN appealed, arguing that “construction delays were justified by weather conditions and owner-requested changes, and therefore do not constitute consumer fraud.”

The Appellate Division rejected those arguments and left the homeowners’ award intact.

New Jersey’s New Home Warranty Program had already addressed some defects at the property, but the appeals court said that process did not prevent the homeowners from pursuing separate claims outside the warranty case.

The court affirmed the judgment in June 2026. Because the opinion is unpublished, it settles this dispute; however, it does not serve as binding precedent for future New Jersey cases.