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What's wrong with cutting into a post tension slab? As long as the tensioned cables aren't cut/damaged, nothing wrong with that. It's done all the time during remodels.
Plus, the person cutting has a personal vested interest in doing the job correctly as mistakenly damaging a post tension cable can be fatal.
And that's my point. The people who installed the plumbing the first time around couldn't read a blueprint, or were using the wrong blueprint (happens all the time). The cable could have been damaged at any time during this "install, recut, move" procedure. And for all we know, the cable WAS damaged, slightly, and who knows what'll happen next year, or the year after that, or in the next decade?
But so far, you're right. Nothing has happened. And they covered their error with flooring. I have seen many things in houses under construction that, if I was the buyer, I would insist get fixed.
In my house, for instance, the electrician used the same color wire for EVERYTHING. I cannot do a damned thing electrical-related in my house (like installing Honeywell smart switches) without breaking out a voltmeter. Unfortunately for me, I bought the place when it was already largely finished.
We just signed a contract on a new home to be built by KB Homes and I am looking for a home
inspector who would be willing to do the inspections as it is being built. Perhaps 2-3 visits at
critical stages and a final inspection.
Any recommendations of good home inspectors who would do this ? Ideally, I am thinking it would be
someone who has lots of construction experience under their belt.
This is a unique idea to pay an inspector to oversee the building of a new house from a builder that is guaranteeing the performance and quality of the home. I think you are wise to be wary but am doubtful that an inspector would be worth the money you would have to pay. I used C.M.E as lvoc mentioned on my used house purchase and they did a pretty good job as well as provide a fine written report with pictures that wasn't all boilerplate. However it cost around $600 as I recall and that was for one visit. For you to have them come out a few times might be pretty expensive. Where would your money be better spent? When I visited a new house that I was building in California under similar circumstances, I talked to the subcontractors and ended up paying them some money directly for extras that weren't in my contract. This worked out great until the final walk through when the extra electric outlets and house bibs were noticed. I just said that I talked to one of the workers and they said it would be no problem. Nothing came of it. BTW, I have no personality.
So you may want to consider seeking out the on-site construction supervisor (he should be the one in a pick up running around yelling). Express your concerns to him and in a very nice way let him know that if he keeps a close eye on the progress of your house and ensures it's built correctly as well as allowing you to poke around in there and ask a few questions you will be glad to show your appreciation for the inconvenience with a token of say $500. That would be less than any inspector and you'd get an advocate who is overseeing the home. However, these type actions have to be weighed carefully after you size up the fellow. Don't just run up to him with a fistful of dollars.
This is a unique idea to pay an inspector to oversee the building of a new house from a builder that is guaranteeing the performance and quality of the home. I think you are wise to be wary but am doubtful that an inspector would be worth the money you would have to pay. I used C.M.E as lvoc mentioned on my used house purchase and they did a pretty good job as well as provide a fine written report with pictures that wasn't all boilerplate. However it cost around $600 as I recall and that was for one visit. For you to have them come out a few times might be pretty expensive. Where would your money be better spent? When I visited a new house that I was building in California under similar circumstances, I talked to the subcontractors and ended up paying them some money directly for extras that weren't in my contract. This worked out great until the final walk through when the extra electric outlets and house bibs were noticed. I just said that I talked to one of the workers and they said it would be no problem. Nothing came of it. BTW, I have no personality.
So you may want to consider seeking out the on-site construction supervisor (he should be the one in a pick up running around yelling). Express your concerns to him and in a very nice way let him know that if he keeps a close eye on the progress of your house and ensures it's built correctly as well as allowing you to poke around in there and ask a few questions you will be glad to show your appreciation for the inconvenience with a token of say $500. That would be less than any inspector and you'd get an advocate who is overseeing the home. However, these type actions have to be weighed carefully after you size up the fellow. Don't just run up to him with a fistful of dollars.
Good luck,
Croce
Good points. And then we introduce the Vegas way.. Im a little leery that one fines a clean supervisor at KB...they run a big operation and may be departmentalized.
Talk to CME. Checking a single thing and a letter report is about $250. The office lady actually runs the joint operationally and can dicker if she chooses to.
I have not been impressed with home inspector's inspections. They are only one step up from drive-by inspection.
With a tract home built by KB, you will have limited ability to inspect the jobsite. If you are there too much, they may ban you from the jobsite (ask me how I know).
With semi-custom and full custom homes, I've done the following. I become a pain-in-the-ass to the builder, but eventually they know I'm watching.
At the end of the day, the subcontractors chosen nowadays don't have the depth of skilled labor on the payroll they once had. During the Great Recession, many subcontractors went out of business, and many skilled tradesman eventually left because there was no work in Las Vegas. Today, that "skilled granite fabricator" might have been working at a car wash for the past year and has no special skill beyond the ability to put on a t-shirt with the company logo. (Ask me how I know). In another 6 months, after being fired fore screwing up customer's installations, he may end up working in a non-skilled trade such as landscaping maintenance.
My point is the quality of the workmanship will absolutely leave much to be desired. The best thing you can do is watch them & complain when there is poor workmanship.
First things first. You need a good digital camera with a good quality lens, a good video camera, and plenty of storage media. You will take LOTS of pictures and videos. Don't go overboard; just go to Costco & buy a good digital SLR camera kit (one that has a couple lenses) and a good video camera they have in stock. Do not rely on a cell phone camera.
Request a copy of the soils report & read it.
Request a compaction report for the job site.
Hire the structural engineer of record for the project (the person who engineered the foundation) to inspect the foundation just prior to the concrete pour, and to be present during the pour. With a large developer such as KB, it is possible this engineer is out-of-state, in which case you may need to hire a local structural engineer. The local engineer can pull a copy of the structural plans from the local building department.
Have a couple cylinders pulled from the actual pour - tell the concrete sub you'll have them sent to a lab for testing. Make sure the sub knows this several weeks beforehand so they know to ensure the concrete mixture is up to spec & not substandard. Don't bother sending the cylinders to the lab; all you really need is to make sure the concrete sub knows you are watching.
Tell the sub you want copies of the mix specification ordered from the cement plant. Worst case, the concrete truck driver will have sheets with him; take a cell-phone picture of these sheets & have them reviewed by the structural engineer.
During rough framing, you (not the engineer) should take a torpedo level & a carpenter's square to the job site, along with a can of red spray paint. Use the spray paint on anything suspect - and make the framer replace warped studs and make sure corners that are supposed to be square actually are, you know, square. Things that are supposed to be flat & plumb need to be flat & plumb during rough framing. Use that spray paint can.
If the contractor says, "don't worry; after it is framed we go back & replace studs that are warped. We do 'shim & shear' where we shave down high spots & shim low spots," do not believe him. Do not let sheetrock go up until the framing is square & plumb.
Have the structural engineer return to inspect the rough framing when it is very close to complete. He'll inspect structural elements of the framing such as hold-downs, nailing patterns, etc).
When it is time to install windows, use a smaller torpedo level & carpenter's square to make sure the window opening is a true rectangle & once installed the glass is plumb. You'd be surprised.
I wouldn't bother inspecting the rough electrical or rough plumbing aside from making sure the outlets are where you expect them and the valves for your plumbing are where you expect them.
If you have granite slabs, make sure you personally pick the slabs. Otherwise, you may end up with slabs that do not match (out-of-sequence) or that have significant cosmetic defects. Make sure those slabs with cosmetic defects go into your neighbor's house, not yours.
If you haven't already done so, make sure you order upgraded carpet pads everywhere you have carpet. Then, make sure you are at the job site when the padding is installed - you'd be surprised how often the cheapest crap pads are installed even though you paid for upgraded padding.
A current trend is to cut down on the cost of labor by using a paint that is all-in-one primer/paint. I am not impressed with it. I would make them use a separate primer coat.
I could go on and on, but you get the idea. Be involved. Do not let them tell you "go away & don't come back until we are ready to turn over the keys".
Oh -- I should have written this above -- if you haven't already done so, I suggest you upgrade the in-wall insulation to blown cellulose. You don't need to be there when they blow the cellulose in, but look at it after they are done for anything that looks wrong.
There are a few things on our house that aren't apparently visible but I wish had been done better. There are a couple problems that Stevie Wonder would notice during a walkthrough.
Doing the things on this list would have obviated these problems.
These are the kind of things I would like the inspector to catch ... I am not in the construction
industry so have very little insight/knowledge to uncover/recognize these things...
BECAUSE you are not in the industry & hence don't have a lot of knowledge & experience, YOU THINK the inspector would catch these things. It certainly seems reasonable to expect them to do so -- but in the real world, inspectors work off a checklist without a ton of added wisdom. For example, they check things such as "is the temperature of the oven within +/- 25 degrees F of the thermostat? Is the polarity of electrical outlets correct? Does the AC have appropriate condensation line plumbing?" Rarely would they even pull the cover off the electrical panel to inspect how wiring is installed (for example, to make sure any water following wires down from the ceiling would drip off at a bend prior to the wires entering the box from below). There are many best practices that are not code that an inspector just won't make a note of.
I suggest spending some time on amazon.com looking for some books on the topic of custom home building, then buy a few & read them.
The next thing I suggest is finding a good construction defect attorney (a sub specialty of a real estate attorney) and buy an hour of his time right now. This should *not* be a "free consultation" as you don't have any defects -- yet.
During the 1st half hour, ask him to tell you about residential horror stories he's personally seen. During the 2nd half hour, ask him what you can do from a practical point of view to minimize your risk right now. Get from him a list of a few people to review your project during construction - people he's used as expert witnesses.
Remember, there is more litigation around construction than any other segment of our society.
I wonder if a home builder will allow random inspections of a home as it is being built. I bought a new home from a builder and the contract was very specific when I could inspect the home. The contract allowed for two walk throughs. One approximately in the middle of the process and the other at the end.
I wonder if a home builder will allow random inspections of a home as it is being built. I bought a new home from a builder and the contract was very specific when I could inspect the home. The contract allowed for two walk throughs. One approximately in the middle of the process and the other at the end.
Generally, no. But after the crew knocks off for the evening, they leave the place unguarded. At least that's how it works in my neighborhood.
I consider it my God-given right to wander around construction sites in my neighborhood and check new buildings out. It has been VERY, VERY helpful -- especially when they're building one that has my floorplan. I have also seen many things on SportyandMisty's list. These aren't usually construction defects. It's more like "can't see it from my house" mediocrity.
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