Fannie Mae Unloads Chinese Drywall-Infected Home On Unwitting Central Florida Couple After Giving Foreclosed Property Quick Paint Job, New Appliances

In DeLand, Florida, WFTV-TV Channel 9 reports:

• A DeLand couple claim that 10 months after buying their new home they feel homeless. They said they moved out within days after discovering it was built with Chinese drywall. The defective drywall releases sulfur gas that makes people sick. The couple believes the seller covered it up.
  
  “Can you live inside this home?” Action 9 reporter Todd Ulrich asked homeowner Cristina Ridenhour. “No absolutely not,” she said. She said the garage is the only place in the home that she and her husband consider safe. “As soon as I walk in the smell hits me and it causes a headache,” Ridenhour said.
  
  They bought the home 10 months ago when mortgage giant Fannie Mae sold the foreclosed property which included fresh paint and new appliances. But the week they moved in, neighbors mentioned Chinese drywall to them.
  
  “Everybody in the neighborhood basically knew it had Chinese drywall, but they figured somebody took care of it,” she said. Ridenhour said she and her two children already had headaches.
  
  She said through online searches they discovered that defective drywall corrodes copper, air conditioning and appliances. She said her home was suffering similar effects.
  
  Professional testing confirmed high levels of corrosives gas was released by the Chinese drywall. After getting the result, they moved out for good and sued their home inspection company, that they said didn't find any serious issues and dismissed a strange smell.
  
  Ridenhour said their biggest target is Fannie Mae, that paid contractors to fix the house it sold "as is."
  
  “They would have known something is wrong absolutely,” said Joe Ridenhour. “They would not have been able to sell the house had they not covered it up,” Ridenhour said.
  
  In Florida sellers must disclose known defects. But in foreclosure, sales experts say it’s far harder to prove what a lender and its contractors really knew.
  
  “Fannie Mae is very difficult to fight. It will be up to witnesses to say who knew what and when,” attorney Karen Wonsettler said.
  
  Fannie Mae representatives told Action 9 there are protocols for its contractors and Realtors to detect Chinese drywall before the sale and it is reviewing the couple's claim.
  
  “We can't in good conscious just let our money go to waste,” said Ridenhour.
  
  A national class action lawsuit against Chinese manufacturers has closed, so they can't qualify for damages.
  
  Fixing these kinds of homes can cost $80,000 to $120,000, and the remediation can be very complicated.
  
  According to the Ridenhours, Adams Cameron Realty is working to help get this family back into their home.

Source: Local family feels homeless after buying toxic home.