After two payments totaling $500,000, Roccaforte said he was not paid the final two payments, but yet completed the work. As he was completing the work, he said he encountered two other contractors on the site who told him they were being considered to finish the project and were inspecting it.

“When I asked why I wasn’t getting paid, they said ‘risk management,’ and I’m clueless to what that means,” Roccaforte said.

Sommer said it might deal with the circumstances of a winner of the home not claiming the prize because of tax implications. Gately had wanted Roccaforte to participate in the buyback of the home from HGTV if the buyer didn’t take it.

“The work was going on at the home and Mark had agreed to participate in the buyback, but no final terms were reached,” Sommer said. “There was an issue of a letter of credit they wanted from Mark, and he couldn’t do that.”

Gately declined to discuss the lawsuit in detail.

“We had some issues with the builder we selected, and I can’t discuss them.”

Gately added he hopes the show will give his project national visibility and will hopefully raise awareness for Campbell Ranch.

The Campbell Ranch development has faced turmoil in the past. There was litigation earlier this decade over Campbell’s annexation of acreage into the town of Edgewood to expand the development.

More recently, residents in Tijeras rose up against Campbell’s attempt to drill 4,000-foot water wells they feared would impact their own supplies.

Sources indicate the company has sold few lots the past two years and has been seeking new investors.

The HGTV deal was an unexpected mini-windfall in that it got a lot sold and threw a national spotlight on the project.

Roccaforte said he sued because he devoted half his year to building the project and simply wants to be paid.

“I put my heart and soul into that home, delivered it faster than any other Dream Home, and never heard one negative comment from the developer,” he said. Meanwhile, millions of viewers will see his home on television and hope to become Campbell Ranch residents.