it's the white in his knuckles ? ? the gold in the buckle he'll win the next go round it's boots and chaps it's cowboy hats ? t this is "nightline." >> tonight, new home heartbreak. >> if it could happen to the rich and famous like sandra bullock, it could happen >> i've got some good mold in it. >> homeowners who say their dream houses have turned into nightmares. >> all i've had is issue after issue after issue. >> abc's brian ross investigates along with stations across the country helping home buyers who say they're stuck with shoddy work. >> it's our house. we had to just walk away from it. plus living the mcdream. one on one or maybe side by side with patrick dempsey. >> it's cold!

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good good evening. thanks for joining us. it's the biggest investment most people will ever make in their lives. imagine buying a brand-new dream home and discover it riddled with problems. to make it worse, the builder isn't returning your calls. that is what homeowners around the country are alleging. abc's chief investigative correspondent brian ross and affiliates investigate reports of shoddy construction and a variety of new home problems. >> nick saban, nice to meet you. >> reporter: in the movie "the blind side," actress sandra bullock plays the owner of a fabulous house. >> thank you. >> reporter: in real life the actress ended up in court. suing her builder over huge defects in her multi-million dollar texas mansion she famously later bulldozed to the ground.

hole in her foundation and a snake that moved in underneath. >> up and down you hear the same kind of things. >> reporter: the people in this new subdivision in virginia say they know the feeling. with great-looking houses on the outside and a long list of problems on the inside. >> very upsetting. it's the most expensive purchase any of us are going to make. >> reporter: it happened to simone angle of birmingham, alabama, whose $400,000 brand-new home had bouncy, creaky floorboards >> reporter: that had to be ripped up and a messed-up draining system fixed by the builder only after abc news got involved. >> all i've had since i moved in is issue after issue after issue. >> reporter: what they all had was a bad case of new home heartbreak. >> look at that. >> reporter: a dream house turning into a nightmare. >> it's kind of typical of the hopes that are built to sell, not built to last. >> reporter: these two men, sort of the sherlock holmes and

problems, say they see it all the time in cases they investigate for homeowners. >> that's a sign you have trouble. >> reporter: harrison campbell is a forensic architect. >> they put them up in a hurry, they don't pay attention to detail. >> reporter: booil loden is former president of the american association of home inspectors. >> makes less than a five-degree slope, it should be at least 15 degrees. >> reporter: there's been a building boom in this country. test of thousands of new homes going up every year. with big national builders including the biggest, d.r. and superior customer service. yet documents show horton has set aside some $400 million in each of the last two years to deal with construction defect claims calling it the "ordinary course of business." >> it's got black mold in it. definitely shouldn't see that. >> reporter: now an abc news investigation conducted with stations across the country -- >> wow, you're wringing water out of the wood. >> reporter: case after case of homeowners claiming shoddy

then travel along the ceiling. >> reporter: the big well-known builders, often slow or refusing to fix the problems. big and small. >> black soot, water damage, a giant crack in the foundation. >> reporter: as wls discovered in chicago. >> we had no choice. no one will fix it. it was our house and we had to just walk away from it. >> reporter: in raleigh, north carolina, wtvd heard from army captain morrow bizan who had to put sandbags around his new home inside with almost every rainfall. in seattle, komo-tv heard from homeowners in this development about what the sun racy rays were doing to their siding. >> melted siding. extensive buckling. glaring gaps. >> reporter: the homeowners say the builder keeps putting off any fix. >> hardly any calls get returned. >> reporter: in columbus, ohio. frustrated homeowners took our reporter from wsyx along as they showed up at the builder's office to demand their problems

here are homeowners who want some answers. >> i'm going to have to ask you to leave. appreciate your time. >> would you want your family to live in one of these places? >> thank you very much. >> reporter: the industry trade group says unhappy homeowners are in the minority and all too often americans have expectations that are just too high. >> the american consumer expects a perfect home. there's no such thing as a perfect home. >> reporter: jerry howard is the chief executive officer of the national association of home builders. >> i think the quality of housing being built is as good as it's ever been. >> better than ever? >> yes, sir. >> are they shoddy? >> i say no. >> reporter: big national builders are masters of enticing openers with a dream house, name-brand amenities, designer rooms. >> a fridge dare, galaxy series is their upper end, you'll see tiger woods and a lot of these stars will use those. >> what we don't see in the model home are the bones. the hidden parts of the home.

inspector mark mcgovern says homeowners should always try to go beyond what the sales reps pitch. >> go into that neighborhood, knock on doors and say, i'm considering buying in your neighborhood, can you tell me what your experience is? >> point out all the houses where there are issues. >> reporter: that's what we did at a d.r. horton development in virginia where we met a lot of very unhappy homeowners with problems they say d.r. horton would not fix. >> i'm generally calm but i got to the point i was calling them >> reporter: we brought in the two home detectives to look at what these homeowners described as problems and defects. one of the homeowners, jackie walker, a freelance makeup artist who works for abc news and other media outlets in washington -- >> every one of these is a? >> nail pop or seam. >> reporter: she's marked with blue tape over 800 nails she says have popped out of the wall, along with cracks in the door frames. >> should this happen in a

standard. there's a real problem. >> reporter: but she says she's had to go to war with d.r. horton to get it all fixed and it still is not. well after her warranty expired. >> it has been a nightmare. i've made several attempts to be here for appointments for them to show up. i had 23 appointments and they missed 17 of those. >> reporter: a spokesperson for d.r. horton said the company has reached out to address the problems we raised about the homes in walker's subdivision tonight, no one has contacted them. and as our station katu in portland, oregon, reported, homeowners with problems and defects claim their builder seems to be waiting them out until their first year warranty expires. >> you just get that sense, they're dragging this out so my year runs out, then they're going to dump me. >> have you ever heard of that happening? >> no, sir. >> not to this point? >> not to this point. >> i'm the first person to mention that to you? >> yes, sir.

>> no, sir, not to my knowledge. >> reporter: more and more owners come to realize often when it's too late the contract they signed keeps them from suing the home builder. most builders insist on what's called mandatory arbitration, whose outcomes generally cannot be appealed and are kept secret. >> they like arbitration because it favors them. >> even though it's supposed to be neutral and unbiassed? >> even though it's supposed to be neutral and unbiased. >> reporter: this lawyer served for years an an arbitrator in construction defect case. he says unlikely to be hired again. >> they're not going to get repeat business. >> that's what's at play here? >> yes. >> for the homeowner coming in, the deck is stacked? >> yes. the secret deck is stacked against the homeowner. >> reporter: the american arbitration association says its records show that more than half the time, the homeowner prevails. but in south carolina, the state supreme court ruled this year that the mandatory arbitration clauses used by d.r. horton are unconscionable and

situation. a lack of meaningful choice. you don't like it? hit the road. >> reporter: again and again, it was only after the builders knew abc news or one of our stations was on the case that repair crews showed up. in indianapolis, it was only after wrtv got involved that the builder sent an executive to check out alleged roofing and drainage problems. >> this is how we knew it was leaking. >> reporter: and outside houston, the builder d.r. horton actually offered to buy this house ktrk began to investigate a homeowner's complaints of defects and problems. >> they weren't even moving until you guys got involved. >> reporter: for "nightline," brian ross, abc news, new york. up next, patrick dempsey bringing us up to speed on his life after "grey's anatomy." his response to those tabloid rumors about his marriage. discover why ford

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you know, you know, biking in the woods of maine with patrick dempsey is something most "grey's anatomy" fans can picture in their wildest mac dreams are if you live in his hometown or a lucky "nightline" correspondent -- not me -- you may get to do just that. here's abc's neal karlinsky. >> reporter: we're about as far as hollywood as you can get in patrick dempsey's tiny hometown of lewiston, maine. the actor best known as mcdreamy from "gray's anatomy" hasn't

>> yes, you can be on "nightline," say hello to "nightline." >> reporter: it makes walking around with the 50-year-old trying to find out what his next act might be surprisingly challenging. >> somebody wants to say hello. she's looking at you here. >> hello. >> you won't interrupt, it's okay. >> i remember you juggling in the front yard. for me, i was younger, it was great. >> we were all younger back then. >> it was great to see your success in life. >> thank you very much. >> i've been very proud of you. >> reporter: turns out juggling of dempsey make it out of this old mill town of 36,000 people. that after his first dream fell through. he'd hoped to become an olympic downhill skier. >> i left maine when i was about 17. and i was going to run away with the circus. i auditioned for this play, "torch song trilogy." >> you were actually going to run away. >> i was too young, they

watching him decompress, learning about his dempsey center to help people battling cancer, a cause very personal to him. he lost his mother amanda, seen here in this footage from ten years ago. >> that's where patrick lives when he comes in the summer. >> reporter: to ovarian cancer in 2014. >> your mother i know fought for a long time before she lost her own battle with cancer. >> it seemed like it came back every two years. it was slow-growing. we had her a lot longer than the doctors sort of predicted. >> reporter: i spent the weekend with him riding race bikes, a passion we both share as part of his huge dempsey challenge fund-raiser. >> make a right-hand turn up here. this is the first one. i'll let you be incognito. >> reporter: dempsey comes here after a whirlwind year. >> no hands. >> it's cold! >> reporter: the dramatic and sudden end of his ten-year run on "grey's anatomy" sparked questions about why his character was killed off.

they're back together now. a new movie "bridget jones' baby." enough tabloid headlines to get under anyone's skin. >> "grey's anatomy" was a remarkable ride. without that success i probably wouldn't be here today talking to you. >> are you happy with the way it ended? >> well, you know, i think everybody was sort of surprised how abrupt it was. >> was shonda rhimes done with you? >> i think it was time for us both to be finished. >> that's diplomatic. >> well, you it's hard to keep the creative energy going for ten years. >> there was a lot written that you'd become a diva on set. >> right. i can understand why people would say that. it's interesting. i think you can never really judge an actor on set. because depending on the dynamic of the scene, you are asked to plug into an emotion. >> reporter: then there's this surprising fact about the controversial end of his character. >> i haven't seen the final episode. >> you haven't?

>> do you want me to tell you what happened? >> i think it doesn't end well. one door closes, another door opens, my old man used to say. >> this is jack. >> reporter: the next door was "bridget jones' baby," alongside renney zelling weer and colin firth. >> it's all new to you. >> reporter: playing the familiar role of that irresistible guy. >> i knew i had to do something. everybody's like, he's done not acting anymore. that wasn't at all the case, i love acting. >> reporter: he says things are good at home again with his wife and three kids. >> how are you doing with your wife? >> great, really good. it's a lot of work. you can't not work on it. it's good to say, okay, what's my issue, what's yours, and how do we work on that? >> is it true you're looking to have another baby? >> this is the funny thing about what you get into magazines and they put these quotes out.

having another baby. >> what you're saying is you're having two more? >> we're having triplets. i just want to announce that tonight. >> reporter: for the record, no more babies. but it took coffee and pastrieds at his favorite local spot -- >> good to see you again. >> you too. >> reporter: to find out his first nickname. and a clue that all this admiration, a steady stream of women we never saw ease up, didn't always come so easy. >> what'd they call you growing up here? >> nothing i want to >> i had nicknames. >> like? nothing that began with mc? >> i was a small guy, i was "the amoeba." not your normal nickname. i was a late bloomer. >> i was too. >> yeah. >> reporter: after pastries comes bikes. and the eighth annual dempsey challenge. a huge weekend bike ride and fund-raiser for his dempsey center. >> are you blown away the way this has grown?

turnout. but it also speaks to how profound this disease is and how it affects everybody. >> look at this. >> reporter: the route is filled with supporters on and off the bike. >> thank you very much. nice to meet you. thanks for being here. >> reporter: less interested in hollywood than a local boy done good who put his hometown on the map by helping care for those affected by cancer. >> thanks f s fs for representi >> my pleasure. >> proud of you. >> has fun doing it doesn't hurt either. >> this is mile 200 of the dempsey challenge. it's okay, i'm okay, i can make it. >> whoo! >> reporter: he finished his ride to great cheers. more than $1 million raised. as for his career, that ride has taken a new path and dempsey says he's ready. >> you've got that rom-com thing down. do you ever shake your head, i

now? >> of course you do. i want to be careful about what i do next. >> are you tired oftired of tha about be to the rest of my life, i have to accept that. the question is will i be known as anything other than that later in life? that's the question. >> reporter: for "nightline" i'm lewis karlinksy in lewiston, maine. next up, what hillary clinton said in her very first public appearance since the election. ? my hero zer ? ? such a funny little hero ? ? but till you came along ? ? we counted on our fingers and toes ? ? now you're here to stay ? ? and nobody really knows... ? zero really can be a hero. get zero down, zero deposit, zero due at signing, and zero first month's payment... ...on select volkswagen models. right now at the volkswagen

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h hillary clinton made her first public appearance since losing the white house honoring a commitment to the children's defense fund. she acknowledged the pain of her loss with a message of hope. >> i know this isn't easy. i know that over the past week a lot of people have asked themselves whether america is the country we thought it was.

election run deep. but please listen to me when i say this. america is worth it. our chirp are word it. our children are worth it. believe in our country. fight for our values and never, ever give up. >> thanks for watching abc news. tune into "good morning america" tomorrow. and as always we are online at abcnews.com and our "nightline" facebook page. good night, america. dr. oz: dr. oz: can your chiropractor kill you? in an odds exclusive, that tragic twist blamed for a model's death. now her family is speaking out. could it happen to you?