New Building 10-yr Warranty Claim (2015, insurance, house)

[jpf723]

So we recently bought a home that was built in 2005, the 10yr new-build warranty ends August 2015.

When we went into contract for our home last September, our inspector noticed that some of the wooden beams behind the insulation in an unfinished room in the basement were damp w/ minor rotting.

There was also some water damage on the corner of the dining room floor/walls directly above those beams, and on the garage walls directly on the other side of the dining room. He noted that this was caused by inproper/inadequate flashing on the roof, further evidenced by the water marks running down along the side of the house directly outside the dining room and above those basement beams.

We had the seller try to fix this by opening up the walls in both the dining room & garage (to dry out the wood), fix/paint them, and have proper flashing installed. I've been checking on these wooden beams from time to time, especially after heavy rains and they don't seem to be any more damp, but don't seem to be dry either.

There is no water leaking down the walls or puddles forming inside the house and the walls look fine, but I'm a little worried that the seller did not do an adequate job.

1) Is this something I can have the original builder fix under warranty? The booklet says that waterproofing is the responsibility of the builder, but does have an exclusion which states:

"Dampness in basement and foundation walls or in concrete basement and crawlspace floors is often common to new construction and is not a deficiency".

Considering it has been 9yrs since construction, would this situation qualify?

2) The booklet also states:

The Program cannot reimburse homeowners for repairs they have made: the Program must inspect the alleged defect first and then authorize the repair. If you make repairs without authorization, you will not be reimbursed for the expenses.

We're not seeking reimbursement for those costs (since the seller bore them), but is this something that might exclude us from making claims on the warranty? We have pictures and descriptions from the inspection describing the problem for the roof, flashing, dining room, and foundation beams, but perhaps the builder can make a counter-claim that the problem was exacerbated by having unauthorized repairs done.

Any help would be much appreciated, and apologies for the long post!

[Retriever]

In my experience, based on my own home and those of several co-workers, those homeowner warranties have enough exclusions built into them so as to preclude most claimants from being successful. The only person I knew who was actually successful with his homeowner's warranty claim had a basement wall that was buckling, and which put his house in danger of collapse.

As far as I can tell from my experience, unless the claimed defect makes the house structurally unsound, you will probably not be successful with your claim. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't try, but...don't be surprised if the insurance company quotes some type of weasel clause that allows them to deny your claim.

[jpf723]

Wow really? This is backed by the NJ Department of Community Affairs, would've thought there'd be more protection for homeowners...

NJ Department of Community Affairs