Nevada Supreme Court Clarifies its Definition of a "New Residence" for NRS Chapter 40

In ANSE, Inc., d/b/a Nevada State Plastering v. The Eighth Judicial District Court, 124 Nev. Adv. Op. 74 (Sept. 25, 2008), the Nevada Supreme Court clarified whether their definition of a “new residence”, as decided in Westpark Owners’ Ass’n v. District Court (123 Nev. ___, 167 P.3d 421 (2007); see blog post from June 27, 2008), precluded a homeowner who is not the home’s first purchaser from seeking remedies available under NRS Chapter 40 for constructional defects.  In Westpark, the Court interpreted “new residence” as a product of original construction that has been unoccupied as a dwelling from the completion its construction until its sale.  In this case, approximately 700 of the residences at issue in the constructional defect case were occupied as dwellings before the residences’ subsequent owners obtained title to the homes.  Relying on Westpark, petitioners sought summary judgment as to their NRS Chapter 40 liability on claims related to those residences. 

The Court found that petitioner’s expansion of “new residence” in Westpark as precluding a homeowner who is not the home’s original purchaser from obtaining remedies available under NRS Chapter 40 violates that chapter’s spirit, leads to unreasonable and absurd results, and ignores Westpark’s unique factual background.  While rejecting petitioner’s claim, the Court recognized it needed to better clarify the definition of “new residence”.  The Court indicated a “new residence” under NRS 40.615 is one that has remained unoccupied as a dwelling from the completion of its construction to the point of its first sale.  Thereafter, subsequent owners of that residence, as claimants, may seek NRS Chapter 40’s residential constructional defect remedies, so long as the action is instituted within the applicable statute of repose.