Sofía Vergara is being sued by the contractors who renovated her Los Angeles mansion for allegedly failing to pay them more than $1.7 million.
According to a complaint filed on Nov. 27 and obtained by PEOPLE, Reside Custom Homes (RCH) alleges the Modern Family star, 51, has failed to pay two invoices dating back to March and July 2023 for work completed on the house totally $1,700,492.64. The filing accuses the star of breach of contract, promissory fraud and intentional interference with contractual relations, among other claims.
Vergara’s attorney Martin Singer said in a statement to PEOPLE: “My client made claims against the contractor, Reside, several months before this specious lawsuit was filed. Sofia Vergara’s claims were for significant overcharging by Reside, substandard and negligent work, and long delays seeking damages in excess of $5 million.”
He added, “We are confident that my client will prevail in this dispute.”
Records show Vergara purchased the home for about $26 million in 2020, while she was still married to ex husband Joe Manganiello. The pair, who announced their split after 7 years of marriage in July 2023, had previously re-listed another home in the area for sale for $18 million in June.
Per the contractor’s filing — which names Vergara and her business partner, CEO and founder of Latin World Entertainment Luis Balaguer, as owners of the property — Vergara hired RCH in April 2022 to renovate the new house and they completed the original scope of work as planned by December 2022.
They claim Vergara then asked for additional work to be done including adding plaster that “had to be sourced from a small, rural town in the United Kingdom” to many of the walls as well as the removal and replacement of the rear stairs, which had to be custom fabricated.
The suit claims that “Vergara repeatedly represented and promised … that she would personally ensure that RCH was paid in full for all of its work on the Property” upon completion of the project.
The company sent an invoice for $896,196.15 in March, which they say remains unpaid to date. A final invoice for the additional work was sent in July for $657,245.23. That, the contractor claims, is also outstanding. RCH put a mechanic’s lien against the property in August.
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According to RCH, Vergara never complained about the quality of work throughout the renovation despite regular check-ins on site. She allegedly moved into the property in March 2023, according to the suit. “Some seven months later and only after RCH recorded a lien against the Property did the Owner and Vergara complain for the first time,” the filing claims.
RCH also alleges their employees and subcontractors were mistreated on the job site.
“Throughout the duration of RCH’s work on the Property, Vergara would routinely engage in aggressive outbursts and would humiliate, ridicule, harass, and seek to intimidate RCH’s employees, representatives and subcontractors, among others,” the complaint says.
It continues, “Vergara’s outbursts became so frequent and severe that it became difficult for RCH to keep subcontractors engaged and willing to continue working on the Project.” They claim they’d frequently have to convince workers “not to quit” because of what they describe as “pervasive, abusive, and hostile behavior.”
Things escalated in October 2023 when RCH claims “Vergara hired counsel to bully RCH (and others) with meritless allegations of wrongdoing and threats of litigation.”
The actress has had what she described as a “very interesting and very long year,” she told PEOPLE in November during her Toty Transforma AHA launch party.
“I went through a divorce this year, the SAG strike that went on for so long,” she continued.
However, while she admits that there have been several obstacles for both her personally and the entertainment business as a whole, she believes that there’s a brighter future on the way. “It’s not like it’s bad,” Vergara continued. “I think all the things are resolving, everything is going to be okay and I’m very excited for next year.”
