Construction Defects: A Surprise Burden No Homeowner Should Have To Endure

Within the realm of building or remodeling your home, construction defects are much like a cancer that eats away at your very core, your physical integrity, your strength and ultimately your ability to exist.

Too, a house whose physical structure is impaired, with its integrity to keep out the elements, protect its’ occupants and withstand the effects of weather over time compromised, will ultimately become unlivable.  No longer a place you can call home but rather a hellish place to flee from.

Having had to endure and live with construction defects as a result of shoddy workmanship and negligence, I believe every homeowner who is building, remodeling or buying a home should become aware and informed about the very real possibility of construction defects.

So what are construction defects?

Well, they can be structural, such as the foundation, improper flashing or roofing that is prone to leaking, to cosmetic, such as sloppy tile work or poorly applied stucco. But it is the structural that has the potential to cause havoc and should be of great concern to a homeowner.

Generally speaking, construction defects fall into four categories:

Workmanship: i.e., substandard or shoddy work
Materials: i.e., inferior material such as building paper, roofing material, poorly manufactured windows
Design: i.e., roofing design contributes to water intrusion
Engineering/Soil: i.e., structural failures and earth movements

The more common defects typically found in residential construction consist of the following:

Windows/Doors: Causes include incorrect installation, lack of or improper flashing or the product itself is defective  

Roofs: Causes included flashing is lapped incorrectly or installed improperly or in the case of a flat roof (like ours) slopped improperly.
Decks / Balconies lack of or incorrectly applied flashing or incompatible materials applied that quickly deteriorate.

Drywall: Improperly applied resulting in stucco cracks or peeling stucco.

Concrete: Cracking or improper sloping where water is driven towards the house and not away from it.

Drainage: Ponding with water driving towards the house

Stucco: Excessive cracking which could be a structural, soil settlement or improperly applied material.

Mold: The result of water intrusion and finding and stopping the source of the leaks is the number one priority. Typically in litigation air sampling, documentation and other appropriate test are preformed followed by remediation.

Moisture through floors: Concrete not properly mixed or vapor barrier compromised or missing.

Structural issues: Components such as tie downs (metal straps/brackets or shear walls, which bear lateral forces, are incorrectly installed.

As you can see, there is much to be concerned with and this is just an abbreviated list.  Once any of this becomes noticeable to the homeowner, he/she needs to act quickly and methodically.

Depending on the severity of the defects you’ll either want to contact a forensic re-construction contractor or engineer to assess the damages thus far.  If you’re not familiar and comfortable doing this on your own initially, then you should immediately contact a construction defect attorney whose experience in these matters can help guide you through the process.

In our case, we went ahead and contacted several forensic reconstruction contractors who walked the project and provided us with a breakdown of defects and code violations. With my husband being familiar with the trades and knowing some of what was done incorrectly, it was appropriate for us to go this route initially.  Once we got the first reconstruction phase underway to stop the leaks through the walls and windows we then contacted a construction defect attorney knowing that we had an uphill battle ahead of us with the contractor based on the reports by these experts.  Ultimately, the entire house had to be taken down to the framing, starting over, but this time built to meet and exceed industry standards.

This is not a quick process and is indeed frustrating, particularly when you’re in litigation as both parties have their experts marching through your house over a period of time. Everything that has been opened up for examination stays that way for quite awhile, reminding you every minute, every hour and everyday the devastation that has befallen you and your family.  It is an emotional roller coaster to say the least and everyone’s nerves will be tested.  You’ll likely find yourself questioning the justice system, but not before the anger sets in. Hundreds of thousands of us have been on this ride so be forewarned.

And the expense incurred to go through all this?  Let’s just say your money tree had better be well fertilized.

So the take away here is to become aware of problems that can occur during the construction of your home. If you’re not well versed in this area and you notice some things are just not right or if you're experiencing some problems with the contractor, hire an independent new construction contractor or home inspector to assess the situation thus far.

If serious or costly problems are found, contact a defect construction attorney to guide you through the process of what needs to be done next including firing the contractor.

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