Builders Landscaper trying to sue US for payment not received by builder

[jmt123]

What is the name of your state? North Carolina

We recently built a custom home. We opted for builder financing instead of a construction loan of our own, so the property was not ours and was in the builders name until we closed on it just a few weeks ago. At closing we were provided a clean title as well as the typical title insurance. I'm certain that our lender (a leading bank) would not have allowed us to close on the property if there were any outstanding liens on it.

Now we are getting phone calls from the landscaper saying that the builder owes him around $20,000 for numerous jobs that he has done for them including work at our house. For our house the amount is $350. He is claiming that he is going to sue us since he can not get the builder to pay him. I guess the builder is claiming that they are not happy with the job that he did. I have to admit, it was not very good work- but we did not complain about it once.

Can he do this? We had no contract with him. His contract was with our builder. If you think about it we already paid for that landscaping when we paid the builder the total price for the house which included a certain amount of landscaping.

What can we do about this?What is the name of your state?

[jmt123]

As an update I guess what the landscaper is going for is called Unjust Enrichment.

"Gain or benefit that is the result of another's efforts or acts but for which that other has received no compensation, and for which the one receiving the benefit has not paid. A person who is deemed by law to have been unjustly enriched at the expense of another is required to make restitution to the other."

I understand the concept of this as defined. However

1. the property did not belong to us when he was doing the work.
2. he is a sub-contractor for the builder & his contract was with the builder
3. WE did not select him to do our landscaping. We had never heard of his company until their sign went up in the yard a week before we closed on the property.
4. At the time of closing that property was free of any liens.
5. We paid the builder the full amount for the house at closing - which included a certain amount of landscaping. So we have already paid once for this landscaping!


Anyone have any thoughts? Anyone????