WEST LAFAYETTE — Former Purdue football coach Ryan Walters’ house hit the market last weekend, but the initial home builder filed a civil lawsuit in Hamilton County in June claiming Walters and his wife, Tara, breached their contract with him.
The Walterses entered into an agreement with Steve Schrader Homes on May 10, 2023, roughly five months after Ryan Walters was named Purdue‘s head coach, according to the initial complaint filed on June 24, 2024.
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Schrader Homes was contracted to supply labor, services, equipment and materials to build the Walterses’ home at 2425 Gattem Farm Way, which is northwest of West Lafayette’s city limits, according to the lawsuit.
The budget to build the house was $3.5 million, according to the lawsuit. The house hit the market Saturday, listed for $4.9 million.
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The couple denied these allegations and filed a counterclaim against Steve Schrader Homes, claiming they were misled to believe the business had an “excellent reputation.”
The counterclaim states that “based on false inducements and a desire to create the appearance that an agreement had been reached, (Schrader Homes) persuaded (the Walterses) to sign a document.” That document appears in Schrader Homes’ complaint and appears to be a contract for the construction of the house.
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“(The Walterses) did not understand or agree that (the contract) was a valid and binding agreement, in part, because key decisions needed to be made that could significantly alter the design and price of the home,” the counterclaim states, explaining that they never agreed on what house would be built and the cost of it.
Attorneys for Steve Schrader Homes denied many of the allegations in the counterclaim, including a dispute with an unnamed “certain public figure that would be important information to defendants” and might have dissuaded the Walterses from doing business with the home-building company.
The Walterses’ attorneys denied that allegation but stated that the couple “no longer wanted to continue negotiations with the plaintiff.”
On Feb. 2, 2024, the Walterses’ attorneys informed attorneys for Steve Schrader Homes that “my clients have no intent to proceed to do business with your client,” according to the lawsuit filing.
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Steve Schrader Homes filed suit against the Walters on June 24, 2024, in Hamilton Superior Court 2.
A hearing was scheduled for Monday on the motion to dismiss, but no order appears in the file indicating that a decision was made in the case, which is currently scheduled for a bench trial June 10. Attorneys on either side did not respond to emails and phone calls Tuesday from the Journal & Courier.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.