Seabrook residents accuse Spring contractor of shoddy work, fraudulent lien

A Seabrook couple is suing over claims the Spring contractor they hired to repair their home, damaged during Hurricane Ike, took almost $200,000 from them and placed a fraudulent lien on their property.

Stephen and Crista McLaughlin, of Seabrook, filed a lawsuit on Aug. 11 in Harris County District Court against Spring resident Rocky Sheffer, doing business as Coastal Restorations, citing violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, breach of contract, filing a fraudulent lien and slander of title.

The McLaughlins say that they hired contractor Sheffer to repair their home, located in the 600 block of North Flamingo in Seabrook, after it was damaged during Hurricane Ike. According to the brief, Sheffer defrauded the McLaughlins out of their entire life savings, almost $200,000, for his shoddy and incomplete work.

The suit alleges that when Sheffer refused to repair his mistakes, the McLaughlins fired him, so he placed a lien on their property.

The McLaughlins are seeking to have the lien removed from their property, as well as damages, attorney’s fees and court costs. They are being represented in the case by Pearland attorney S. Tim Yusuf.

Harris County District Court Case No. 2011-47614.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Harris County Courthouse. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.