A DISTRAUGHT homeowner has been cast out of her own home after what started as a sewage issue turned into a frustrating blame game between two companies.
Emoral Farmer purchased what she thought was her dream home nearly two years ago, but now she says that the house was defective to begin with – and no one told her.
After just two weeks in the home in 2023, Farmer and her two children were forced to evacuate.
She says that the five-bed, 4.5-bath home in Fayetteville, Georgia, about 20 miles south of Atlanta, is plagued with plumbing issues – including dripping and stagnant water – which have caused extensive water damage.
The damage is so severe that the entire ground floor of her home has been gutted and is now empty while contractors work on home repairs.
Farmer says it feels as though she’s been deceived.
“Bamboozled,” Farmer told ABC affiliate WSB through tears.
“Like I’ve been played on what we call the American dream.”
Farmer says the problems began when the family experienced sewage backup within their first month in the house.
“Any water that’s put in the sinks stays there for days and days at a time,” Farmer said.
It was the first sign of a slew of problems that would follow.
Chisel Mill Homes, the Atlanta-based developer that built Farmer’s home, paid for Farmer and her family to stay in a hotel while theyinvestigated the house.
They found a severed septic line – the apparent source of the drainage issues.
The investigation also turned up a shocking development: the power company that installed the house’s electrical line was responsible for the damage.
The power company, Coweta-Fayette EMC (CFEMC), accidentally ruptured the septic line during the electrical installation while the home was being built.
CFEMC claims that they notified the contractor about the damage and even left a hole for repairs.
“I’ve been played on what we call the American dream.”
Emoral Farmer
Chisel Mill claims that they received no such notification.
Chisel Mill says they would have fixed the issue before the family moved into the house, WSB reported.
In response to the complications, CFEMC hired an inspector to look into the issue.
The insurance company representing CFEMC claimed that while the company was responsible for severing the house’s septic line, that particular issue was not the cause of the house’s drainage issues.
CFEMC claims that the house was already defective before being purchased by Farmer.
Caught in the middle of the dispute, Farmer says that she’s far less concerned by determining who caused the damage than when she can return.
“Everyone can say it’s not your fault, but it doesn’t matter whose fault it is,” Farmer said.
“It’s still my home, my kids have to live here.”
Farmer, who is still living in a hotel with her children and paying the mortgage on her house, started a GoFundMe to help with the costs.
