Despite its name, customers allege a proptech construction startup has been anything but welcoming.
Plaintiffs filed three lawsuits against Welcome Homes, a tech-based home construction company founded by DigitalOcean founders Alec Hartman and Ben Uretsky, as well as Alec’s brother Marc, the New York Post reported. The company was launched in 2020, letting buyers choose a plot of land, select finishes for their new home and put down a deposit on the platform.
The five plaintiffs accuse the company of fraud after allegedly taking hundreds of thousands of dollars while delivering unfinished or poorly-constructed homes in the Hudson Valley.
“We were promised a dream home, and all they delivered was a nightmare,” plaintiff Rena Adams told the Post; she and her wife sued in September, seeking over $2.8 million in damages.
The Adamses signed a contract in July 2022, providing a $113,000 deposit for a 4,600-square-foot residence on their New Paltz property with a guaranteed seven-month completion timeline. By June 2023, Welcome Homes hadn’t obtained a building permit, forcing the couple to secure one themselves, according to court documents. Months later, work allegedly consisted of a four-foot hole and cleared land.
After terminating the contract in October 2023, the Adamses claim Welcome Homes billed them for an additional $212,164. The couple ultimately hired another contractor to build a smaller home for $2.4 million.
Two additional lawsuits filed last year by other homeowners allege similar issues, each seeking $500,000. One plaintiff claims they paid thousands in mortgage extensions and interest while waiting for their Windham home, where subcontractors allegedly installed wrong windows and improperly placed electrical components. All plaintiffs allege Welcome Homes provided no clear reasons for the delays.
Former HGTV host Anthony Carrino, who joined as vice president of design in 2021 but left in January 2024, told the Post only one customer had a completed home when he departed out of dozens of contracts. He cited disagreements with the Hartmans’ direction as his reason for leaving.
A Welcome Homes spokesperson stated, “We remain confident and look forward to addressing these unfounded lawsuits in court.” Welcome Homes has completed 18 homes out of 45 customer contracts, according to company sources.
In September 2022, the startup closed on a $29 million funding round.
— Holden Walter-Warner
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