AURORA, Colo. — An Aurora man is left searching for answers after he says his new home contract was abruptly canceled.
"This is very devastating news for my family. I have three kids and they... I don't even have words. I don't even know how to explain this to them," John Kirkos said.
In December 2020, Kirkos said he signed a contract with KB Home to build a house just north of Green Valley Ranch.
Eight months and a down payment later, Kirkos said he was told by KB Home's lender in August that the contract would be canceled.
"They said, 'Yeah, we know you paid, but we still want to cancel this contract, and you no longer have a loan with us,'" Kirkos said.
Kirkos received an email asking him to sign off on the cancellation. He has yet to sign the termination contract, so his down payment is still in limbo.
"Maybe they thought I'm a foreigner who cannot explain himself or defend himself," Kirkos said.
He added that the company told him he no longer qualified to purchase the home because he had taken out a PPP loan for his limousine business.
"I showed them that I paid it off the next day, and after two weeks they [the government] sent me this letter that my PPP loan has been 100% forgiven," he said.
Kirkos believes the real reason for the canceled contract comes down to money.
"After three days, they posted that house for $631,000. Originally, I signed for it $527,000," he said.
Denver7 reached out to KB Home for more information on the circumstances, but the company has not responded.
Real estate attorney Donald Eby said it's hard to say for certain if Kirkos is officially booted from the contract.
"Well, there’s certainly a lot of facts and complicating issues that we do or don’t know. Should he go to an attorney and get some help before he walks away from this? I would say absolutely yes," Eby said. "The builder doesn’t have the unilateral right just to terminate the contract. Now, I haven’t read the contract and the specifics of the contract but the buyer has some rights."
When dealing with large home building groups, Eby said his firm has noticed trends.
"Our firm has seen a lot of buyers where builders are happy to get that contract terminated because they can turn around and resell that home that has been built for a lot of money,” the attorney said. "It's going to cost him more to find another house moving forward. That’s why we have contracts so you have enforceable rights.”
Kirkos, now left looking for his family's next home, said he doesn't plan to give up without answers.
"I understand KB's motive is money," he said, "and taking advantage of consumers like me."
