Fort Myers Beach couple says new modular home was damaged upon delivery

FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. —

From high above Bayside Estates in Fort Myers Beach, the gulf can be seen on the horizon.

When Hurricane Ian hit in 2022, it brought the Gulf straight into the neighborhood.

“It didn't get the pictures on the walls, but it was 42 inches of water inside (our home),” Bob Ouellette said.

Bob and his wife Maggie evacuated before the storm, and when they came back home, they had to clear a path just to get inside.

“It was more devastation that people can realize,” Maggie said. “I mean, seriously. It didn’t even look like a subdivision.”

With their home ruined, they needed to find something else.

After bouncing around in different rentals for years, they designed and eventually paid in full for a new modular home.

In April 2025, it was set to be delivered, and they were excited.

Until it actually got to their lot.

CONCERNS ON DELIVERY DAY: ‘DIDN’T LOOK RIGHT AT ALL’

“You're not expecting it to come in fully finished and perfect, but this didn't look right at all,” Maggie recalled.

The Ouellettes snapped several photos showing their concerns.

“Well, the frame was bent. And the back deck was sagging,” Bob described. “Nothing looked right. It was crooked from end to end and from side to side."

"I mean, the roof looked like it had waves in it,” Maggie added.

The Ouellettes said workers came out several times to try to make repairs and even took the home off-site at one point.

The couple had planned to elevate the modular, and said they were told that would make it easier to repair.

But they said the fixes weren’t made, and that lifting the home only brought more problems to light.

"We paid for a new home, and now we get something that's damaged,” Bob said.

COUPLE HIRES ATTORNEY, FILES LAWSUIT

“This circumstance, where the home shows up literally trashed, like it's been splashed on the highway and the beams have been bent. I've never seen anything like that," Richard Inglis said.

Inglis is an attorney representing the Ouellettes. In October, the couple filed a lawsuit against Central Mobile Homes, which sold them the modular.

In court filings, the company denied the allegations against them, but has since turned around to sue two other companies: Jacobsen Manufacturing, which made the home, and Stanfield Mobile Movers, which drove it to Fort Myers Beach.

Records show both of those companies also deny the allegations against them.

A hearing is set for next month.

“There's some information out there that suggests that there were axles that broke on the transportation vehicles. Tires blew," Inglis said.

ENGINEER’S REPORT: HOME ‘DOES NOT COMPLY’ WITH CODE

This past winter, the Ouellettes hired an engineer to inspect the home.

The engineer reported that damage has “compromised the integrity of the structure’s primary load-resisting system,” and wrote that the modular “does not comply with the Florida Building Code.”

The Ouellettes, having already paid in full for the home, feel they have no power in the situation.

"You have no recourse if something's wrong,” Bob said.

“If they want their money, we need to (be able) to approve of it after arriving and making sure we can get an inspection, and it's OK,” Maggie said.

Inglis admits that, other than warranties, there's little to protect consumers in these cases.

“You can go out to any of these mobile home dealers and say, 'Listen, I'll give you 50% down now, and when you deliver the home, I'll give you the remainder 50%.’ They'll say, 'See you later.' They're not going to do it,” he said.

After first enduring the loss of their home, and now not having one for nearly four years, the Ouellettes are left waiting and leaning on each other to get through.

“It just gets to your core,” Maggie said. “I mean, how long are we supposed to endure all this?”

WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE YOU BUY A MODULAR HOME

Gulf Coast News reached out multiple times to all three companies named in the lawsuit.

Only Central Mobile Homes provided a response, which was sent via email.

“My official statement regarding the Ouellette home is that Central Mobile Homes Inc. has always acted in the best interest of our customers and there will be a resolution forthcoming regarding Mr. and Mrs. Ouellette’s home,” company president Kenneth E. Kinney Jr. wrote.

Inglis said there is a court-ordered mediation scheduled for next week.

On top of everything else, the Ouellettes said the contractor they hired to lift the home only finished part of the job and has left the area. They have filed a police report in that case.

Inglis said consumers need to make sure they fully understand a contract before signing it. He urges people to go over contracts with experts, whether it be an attorney or even an accountant.

Inglis also suggests customers make sure the contract includes a provision that allows people to recover legal fees in case there are issues.

DOWNLOAD the free Gulf Coast News app for your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app to stream news, entertainment, and original programming on your TV.