I performed a home inspection on a new construction home last year and the same client reached out to me again. He said he has 3 problems he wants me to check out and write a report on.
leaky shower
Bathroom door hardware not working correctly
Different finishes on his kitchen cabinets
Through a phone call with him he is claiming the builder won’t fix these things and sounds like he wants me to inspect, write a report so he can take them to court. The only thing on this list that seems to be a real problem is the leaky shower which could cause some damage if left untreated. The last two items seem to be more of a personal preference. I guess my problems are as follows:
I don’t want to be involved in any court disputes
Besides the leaky shower, these items aren’t critical and are just personal preference, how does he expect me to write a report essentially agreeing that they need to be changed or fixed? The door still works it’s just finicky and the kitchen cabinets work, they just have some discrepancies which you will get with millwork.
Is this worth taking a look into? I kind of want to tell him that I’m not able to comment on the door hardware or the cabinets, that’s a personal preference, non critical item that he has to work out but I’m willing to look at the shower and see if the leak is causing any structural or serious damage. Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
Offer to do an 11th-Month warranty inspection. If the hardware on the door isn’t working right, put it in the report. If the shower leaks, obviously put that in the report. As far as the cabinets, you can be a bit more picky with new construction, but it would have to be fairly egregious for me to put that in a report.
Then decline the focused inspection for that exact reason. It’s your choice. He can have a general contractor look at the items and write a report. He can also write his own report and submit it with his complaint.
Not a good business to in if you’re worried about going to court. Just write your reports with the truth like all them will be in court, because you never know which one will end up there. As for new construction and warranty inspections, some builders are good about it and want to do the right thing and keep homeowners happy.
But, some will literally say anything to save themselves 5 seconds or 5 cents. Many will only fix “code violations”, that’s their excuse knowing that home inspectors rarely provide code references.
Keep in mind there is an implied warranty when someone buys a house. Just like a car if one of the doors was painted the wrong color would you expect it to be fixed? I also tell folks to pick their battles and stick to their guns. YMMV
Yep, it is time for a one-year warranty inspection! Charge the same price as the original, report on the issues that the person has, and any other issues you find! Problem solved! Do not be afraid of going to court; chances are great it will never come to that.
With him saying he wants to take the builder to court and you say that you don’t want to be involved in any court disputes, I think turning down the inspection is the prudent thing to do, n’est pas?
You need to do a full 11 month warranty inspection. Do not just report these 3 things. Do a full inspection on everything, and being new construction you need to report on everything, even cosmetic issues. Would you ignore issues with a new car?
If this is past the 1 year warranty on the house, there is nothing the homeowner can do. Unless he has documentation that he reported any issues before the warranty was up. The builder is supposed to have a one year warranty by a third party carrier. They would pay for these repairs if reported within the time limit. Have your client get the insurance carrier contact info and have them contact them directly. If the builder refuses contact the city or county building Dept. Then contact an attorney.
But nothing matters if past the one year mark when they told the builder about the issues.
Evening, Eric. Hope to find you well. Non-member guest?
Sounds to me like your client is looking to you for sound professional advice in the form of a report from a CPI. Charge accordingly.
To me, seeing I loved these repeat new building inspections, I looked it as a repeat new construction return visits as something to build my reputation on. And I did. Eventually being invite to speak and give witness of fact at a public provincial inquiry on new condo developments. I was blinking proud!
Eric, you can comment on anything you personally attest to. Ask the client for anything stipulated in the contract, including cabinet finishings hardware and colors.
Help the client.
What we do on 11 month inspections is we look at the Builder’s warranty paperwork. Items that are warranty related get “chapter and verse” quoted from their documents to alleviate any grumbling. Amazingly “some” builder’s warranty paperwork covers finishes and things of that nature but those are the exception rather than the rule. Depends on the company.
So, like some others have said, do the inspection as a full inspection and write accordingly.
If you document things factually for conditions as observed, there should be not much for concern. I will re-iterate what others have stated:
If the shower leaks - document it with a moisture meter at observable damage
If the cabinet finishes are different and visibly off or if the door hardware does not work right, report it clearly and accurately
I would only do this as part of a full warranty inspection as there will be other things with cosmetic stuff as well (Nail Pops, settling, Paint needed on exteriors and all of the normal things).
If the client does not want to pay for another inspection then I would just say that this would be the only way to do it or pass. Tell them you want to make them a thorough report that they can work with the builder on things and present them a factual and clear report. Keep it to the point, no speculation and report as you observe accurately and it should be easy and nothing to be feared of. It will be on the owner of the home to proceed as he can with the report to help them, but that is not your problem.