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Old 02-26-2012, 08:32 AM
 
2 posts, read 4,311 times
Reputation: 10

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I bought a house 6 months ago. Had an inspection by the guy we used last time and were very imrpressed with. Now I am finding all these problems. The house is 4 years old and in the last 2 months we developed a crack in the basement. A structural engineer said not to worry, but 2 foundation companies said we need to add 7,000 dollars worth of support!

Also our tiles are cracking in our upstairs bathroom. Small hairline vertical cracks.

Huge gaps have been revealed in our hardwoods- about 1/12th of an inch in several places.

There was also a leaky pipe in our roof that we had to fix.

Do I have any recourse? We bought from the buildern and we lowballed it because he seemed motivated. Got it for 100,000 under assessment. Still we cannot afford to do all this repair work and I am concerned something major is going on!

You spend 300,00+ on a house and you expect it to be nice.....

Worried homeowner
Forest, VA
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Old 02-26-2012, 10:15 AM
 
156 posts, read 368,477 times
Reputation: 50
call the building department and check to see if all the proper permits were pulled and check out homes the builder ever built before .The tiles cracking could mean he did not use backer board and did not put the backer board down correctly or did not put enough screws in it .The flooring spaces could mean he did not let the wood acclimate long enough in the rooms or did not have the house the right temps to lay it .It is solid wood or does it have a plywood backing .Plywood backing on wood is more stable .Pipe in the roof I guess you are talking vent pipe .May have a crack in the boot or was not installed right .Did you get a warranty with the house and did the builder build other homes in your neighborhood as you could have a class action suit against him if they want to go in to file with you .New build does not always mean good build .The foundation could be settlement or could be he built on back fill and the backfill is not stable .Are your gutter downspouts routed away from your foundation are they run underground to a pipe far enough away from the house.Do you have clay soil or sandy soil .What kind of use was the land used for before he built on it .Is the basement if you have one concrete block or poured foundation .I don't really care fore poured ones concrete can set up unevenly if not done fast enough .Need more info .I would check all permits
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Old 02-26-2012, 10:27 AM
 
156 posts, read 368,477 times
Reputation: 50
also remember the foundation companies are looking for work and the structural engineer is unbiased and paid only to give you his understanding of how the house was built .He would know more about structure .
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Old 02-26-2012, 08:33 PM
 
2 posts, read 4,311 times
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Default More info

The house was built on clay with a poured foundation. The SE said it was a "shrinkage" crack. The grading could be better according to the SE and inspector, but they both seemed to think we had time to improve it.

Yes, I guess the best thing would be poor workmanship, that would be better than the house falling apart.

I am just really irritated abut the whole fiasco. Our agent is a family friend and did not even mention a warranty. I am not sure if we would have gotten one though, we have purchased houses 80 years old in the past without any difficulty.

As for other houses he has built, I am not sure how to find that out. The one next door was built by him and is up for sale. I feel like warning people not to buy it.

I have not contacted him about any of the above and I am wondering whether I should. It was a rental so we did not buy it new. I am not sure if he would guarantee any of it.
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Old 02-27-2012, 08:57 AM
 
156 posts, read 368,477 times
Reputation: 50
You could have bought a warranty also and surprised your agent did not tell you as he could have made the builder pay for it .Do you have any kind of white powdery residue on any of the concrete walls as that could be water getting in and the best way to test for moisture on the concrete walls is to take a piece of aluminium foil tape it to the wall and wait 12 to 24 hours if the moisture is on the side of the foil that faces the wall you have moisture coming in and need to address it ,but if it is on the outside just means it is coming from inside the basement and you may need a dehumidifier .You don't want mold .I have the same thing here as the guy who bought the property all around here is building shoddy homes and you just feel like yelling out run ,run fast .I'm glad I did not buy from him and I did not buy my land from him .Remember when they build houses and they are subject to weather outside you will get cracks and shifting .The wood these days is not old growth wood and not very stable .I had my house built with 2x6's a little more stable and you can get in more insulation .A home inspection is that and if you find something the home inspector missed and they give a warranty on there inspection you can go after them and there insurance company in some cases .I was the GC for my house so I know every inch of it .I even sold my house back in NJ with a 1 year warranty I paid for and I had the home inspected before I put it up for sale this way repairs could be done before and there were no surprises .I guess that's why I sold so fast .Some builders care but these days few do because of the economy .You can check to see if he has complaints against him by going to the BBB and most states you can check out the complaints on the builder through his license to build .
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