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dolphin · Guest

Our house is 1 1/2 years old and we have had cracks everywhere. We have large cracks in our basement, in the garage, and front sidewalks. Our builder has worked with us to an extent, but we now have cracks in our stucco and are wondering if all this should be normal. The cracks in the basement go from wall to wall in many places and are slightly raised in a couple places. They drilled three test holes in our foundation and said the foundation is fine. Should I get someone besides the contractor to inspect and do I just get a home inspection?

nemmar · Site Admin

Guest

Thanks Guy! That definitely gives me a better idea of what to do. Luckily our builder is still working with us so we're waiting to see what they will do, but I think I will still check into getting someone else to check our house. Our builder has replaced our front sidewalk and part of our driveway because they were cracked and has replaced our back porch because of water problems our concrete pad had sunk. They are coming over tomorrow to check the cracks in our stucco. Our builder said they will check our stucco and see if they need to have a contractor come in. They've already claimed that yes we have more than usual cracks in our basement, but the foundation is o.k. - I'm not so sure and will try to get someone else to check it.

I'm just amazed at how many problems we have had with our new house and thinking if I ever move I will buy a house that is a few years old and already settled. Our builder is very reputable and I love our house, but it seems to be one thing after another.

Anyway thanks for your help - I'll let you know how things go.
Dolphin~

Guest

Our builder came out and looked at our stucco today. We noticed a couple cracks about two weeks ago and now there are probably close to twenty cracks in our stucco. We have been told not to worry that the cracks in the stucco are normal and since they aren't wide enough to wedge a dime in not to worry about them. I know stucco does crack, but is this normal and do we need to seal them or do anything. I don't want to make a big deal, but I also don't want ignore something that might be a problem. Please help!!

nemmar · Site Admin

Is this the same builder? Are the cracks in the stucco on the exterior or interior of the house? If they are on the exterior stucco siding then you should ask him what he already knows and what a home inspector would certainly ask him if they were evaluating the house:
"What about the water penetration due to those cracks in the stucco?"

Perhaps you're builder is honest and reputable and qualified. Without seeing the problem conditions first hand I can only draw conclusions based upon what you're telling me. With that said here is my impression assuming there are no other conditions/circumstances that I'm unaware of:
Yes, you're builder is correct that all construction materials of a house will expand and contract with the weather and temperature changes over time and this causes minor settlement cracks. Since stucco is not a flexible material, like wood, it will develop cracks more easily. However, this house is ONLY 18 months old and you have excessive cracks everywhere!! Cracks in the exterior stucco siding will allow water penetration no matter how small the crack. If the size is less then a dime width it will still allow water to get behind the stucco which very definitely is NOT something you want. Water will destroy anything it has contact with for long periods of time. You won't see the damage caused by the water penetration until it is far too late and the costs to repair will be very high!

For you're builder to continue to tell you that everything is OK with all the cracks you're getting in your foundation and the rest of your house, leaves me to wonder about his credibility AND his integrity. Why in the world he wouldn't tell you to seal exterior stucco siding cracks is beyond comprehension. When it comes to money some people are capable of anything. I'm getting the impression that this builder is doing what dishonest Realtors do - they "sugarcoat" all the problems in a house just to close the deal. In your case the deal is already closed but the builder may be trying to hide problems that are occuring due to improper construction, foundation or soil conditions. You should check to see if there are "Lemon Laws" for new home construction in your area. These types of laws will protect you in the event that you're builder did not construct the house to acceptable standards. Here are some articles in my site online RE Library that mention aspects of this:

http://www.nemmar.com/real-estate-Grassroots-Groups-As-Own.html

http://www.nemmar.com/real-estate-George-Chuck-10-2004.html

http://www.nemmar.com/real-estate-Significance-Disclosure-Home-Purchase.html

You also should ask the town building inspector about similar problem conditions in the other houses in your immediate area. For example, the town building inspector may know about other homes, new or old, that have had/are having the same problems you are encountering.
1) If that's the case and those homes were built by a different builder, then the problem may be caused by soil conditions in the area. But if the problems are due to soil conditions, then your next door neighbors would have the same problems with cracks developing everywhere in their homes. Are your next door neighbor's encountering these same problems?
2) If those other houses in the area with these problems were built by the same builder, then the problem could be the soil but more likely the cause is the builder's construction methods or materials. The local building inspector may also be able to tell you which houses have/had those problems and what the homeowners did to repair the situation - if they were able to repair it. The homeowner's themselves may give you some great feedback on how they resolved the problem in their homes.

Basically, you should determine if the extensive cracking in your new home is an isolated situation to just your house in that immediate area. If it's isolated to just your house and not your next door neighbor's then I would assume the problems are caused by improper/inadequate construction methods or materials. You have to get an INDEPENDENT opinion from an expert that can evaluate your home in person. You've given you're builder enough chances to determine the cause of all of these developing cracks. Your builder is not giving you answers that satisfy your concerns nor do the builder's answers explain properly what the cause is - because it's certainly not NORMAL settlement that's occuring. Let me know what happens.

dolphin

O.K - I'm still not getting very far. I had a foundations/footing expert come and look at my house. He took a pretty good look at my house and said that our foundation is fine. He questioned the cracks in the stucco, but said they were not foundation related. He admitted that he didn't know a lot about stucco and suggested I have someone else look at it.

I haven't had any luck getting the city building inspector. He never anwers his phone and didn't return my message.

Also - Our builder has had many other problems with houses, but I don't believe any other houses have had cracked stucco. It's mainly been flooding problems ( especially with this past rainy season).

Anyway I still am trying to look into other people to help me - it's just very time consuming.

nemmar · Site Admin

That's great news that it's NOT a foundation problem! The only way you could have determined that is by having the expert you hired see it firsthand and evaluate it. If he couldn't answer the problem in the stucco cracks, then what was his reply to all the other cracks in your house?

"Our house is 1 1/2 years old and we have had cracks everywhere. We have large cracks in our basement, in the garage, and front sidewalks."

"The cracks in the basement go from wall to wall in many places and are slightly raised in a couple places."

Did the foundation expert explain why you have raised wall-to-wall cracks in your basement foundation walls?

Try to determine the extent of the "many problems" your builder has had with other houses he/she has built, especially those related to cracking throughout the home, not just cracks in the exterior stucco. The exterior stucco cracks are less alarming because it's often a cosmetic repair with sealing the cracks to prevent water damage behind the walls. The serious issue is the large wall-to-wall basement foundation cracks and other cracks "everywhere" in your home.