torn up foundation twice now...need advice

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1

Originally Posted By: Holly Hunter
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We’re currently having a home built in the Phx, AZ area and are having numerous problems with our builder. First they poured our foundation too large so they had to rip up a portion of it and redo it…this was inspected and approved and they moved forward with the framing which was started in approx. Dec. '04. I noticed some pipes near the DS bath that seemed to be in the wrong place (the room next door) but feeling as if I didn’t know anything I only spoke about this with my husband but I did take photos. Well, I now visited the home site 2 days ago and the floor in the bath and corner of the room next door have been jack hammered out and the pipes have been moved…I knew it was wrong! Now I’m waiting for a meeting with the builder to discuss this issue. I was so upset when I saw the lack of progress on our home while all the other homes in this new subdivision seem to be progressing like crazy! Ours was one of the first started and now seems to be one of furthest behind with 40 or 50 homes moving forward. I’m wondering what I need to do as I don’t trust anything they tell us. We have seen very little progress since Dec. The only noticeable changes to the structure have been some wiring and duct work…in almost 3 months! They told us they wanted to close on May 31st and this is an almost 4000 sq ft. home! Please help!


[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/p/pipes_before.jpg ]


[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/p/pipesafter.jpg ]


[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/h/housejan.jpg ]


[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/h/housemarch.jpg ]

2

Originally Posted By: pdacey
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


A little help with the pictures



[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/p/pipes_before.jpg ]
[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/p/pipesafter.jpg ]
[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/h/housejan.jpg ]
[ Image: http://www.nachi.org/bbsystem/usrimages/h/housemarch.jpg ]

--
Slainte!

Patrick Dacey
swi@satx.rr.com
TREC # 6636
www.southwestinspections.com

3

Originally Posted By: mboyett
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Wow, we got movie stars (Holly Hunter) and musicians (Bob Wills) using the board…how cool is that?

4

Originally Posted By: aslimack
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Don’t forget Robert Zimmerman (Bob Dylan’s real name)


Adam, A Plus

5

Originally Posted By: mboyett
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Holly,


Seriously though, you will get some advice on the construction progress of your home here I suspect but actually that’s outside the scope of a home inspector’s expertise theoretically. That’s really something you should take up with the builder and your attorney if need be.


Hindsight suggests that you should have contracted with a home inspector to perform Phase Inspections of your home during different stages of construction. This would have caught the plumbing issues probably. Maybe it’s not too late for that. Use “FindAnInspector” on the home page of this website to locate a good, experienced Phase Inspections person there in your area.

–
Mike Boyett


Capital City Inspections


Austin, Tx


www.capcityinspections.com

6

Originally Posted By: aslimack
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Holly,


Does that same builder have anything else going on in that same sub-division?

Adam, A plus

7

Originally Posted By: ccoombs
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Holly


Don't be afraid to ask questions. To be honest, it is sometimes better to be the "don't know the first thing about construction wife" than the "all knowing expert" when dealing with developers. You have common sense and that is the most important tool you can have. If it looks a little strange or out of place, then ask about it. If you can get a sense of what the answer should be before asking, that will give you more control when you confront them on the subject.

Hiring your own inspector is a great inspection. It is one more set of eyes on the project. You can also ask questions so you aren't running to the developer over minor issues. They should also be able to instill confidence in what the developer is doing correctly.

As for the plumbing, I'm surprised they can get the things in the correct place at all. So missing once in a while is expected. The picture with your son shows the lines painted on the foundation showing the location of the post-tension cables. When the problem was found they had to de-stress the cables, locate them in the slab. Saw cut and remove the slab. Relocated the plumbing. Reform and pour the concrete. Wait for the repair to reach a minimum strength. And then stress the cables. So it is a very long process. This didn't include any time to get the engineer to provide a fix....

In general the framing and the home look VERY clean and well built. Who is the developer? Just curious.

You can also request that the engineer of record perform a structural observation to make sure the foundation is okay. Doing this now will help find any other concerns.

If you have any questions, you are welcome to e-mail me.

--
Curtis

8

Originally Posted By: mtimpani
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Whos the builder?

–
Thank you, MarkTimpani


www.pridepropertyinspections.com
9

Originally Posted By: mcraig
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Holly: contact me And I may be able to help you out or refer you to some one in the Phoenix area that can.


www.ironwoodhomeinsp.com


irnwdhis@yahoo.com


602-277-5634


icon_smile.gif icon_smile.gif icon_smile.gif

10

Originally Posted By: Holly Hunter
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Wow, I really appreciate the honest and straight forward replies I’ve received (along with the humor). Our builder is US Homes. I did return to the home yesterday and was able to have a 45 minute walk through with the newly hired “builder”, foreman or whatever he is (2 weeks on our job now)…he was quite nice and seemed truly ready to get our home moving in the right direction. He admitted that the first thing he noticed when he took over the job was that the homes had sat for way too long with little to no progress. He also noticed the pipes were in the wrong place and he made it sound like US Homes already knew about it but hadn’t gotten around to getting the problem fixed yet (just like one person said about getting the engineer involved, etc.). He wasn’t even aware that they had already torn up our foundation once before (I didn’t mention that in my first post). They poured it too wide around the garage which supports the bonus room…that was a big delay. Anyway, I informed him that I have lost all trust in the builder and that I will now be a very visible, very vocal homeowner and I expect full communication along the way…and that I was looking into hiring an inspection firm to track the progress and doublecheck everything they do. He seemed very proactive and ready to get the job done. He showed me many things that had been corrected since he took over (many of our options had been forgotten…extra outlets, extra cam lights, speaker wires, missing bolts along the front wall, a cut phone line going to the kitchen, etc). It sounded as if he’d basically spent the past 2 weeks cleaning up the mess they had created and now he was ready to move forward. I’m hoping this truly is the case. I’m trying to remember what some of the other questions were in the posts but can’t. Once again, I do really appreciate all replies and will keep you posted as to what develops.

11

Originally Posted By: mkober
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Holly,


It sounds like you are on the right track (and getting your builder back on that same track). Over the last 30-plus years I've seen so many construction mistakes that absolutely nothing surprises me anymore. My experience when living in larger metropolitan areas has been that the vast majority of "mega-builders" are so concerned with their bottom line and usually in such a rush to complete and get paid that when a major mistake is made, things grind to a halt and can be completely walked away from until the desperate (future) homeowner is willing to make concessions just to get the project brought back to life. Just try to remain rational, and be persistent. Your project is almost too far along to benefit significantly from the services of an on-site inspector, but maybe not (depends on how errant the insulation, sheetrock, mechanical and finishing crews become). Good luck!

--
Michael J. Kober, P.E. and H.I.

"NACHI Member and Proud Of It!"

12

Originally Posted By: whandley
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Hey Holly; Good luck with your new home. Try and stay positive through the balance of the project and purchase. The real fun will begin once you


actually occupy the structure and begin to function, test and task all the


various systems which make up the finish product. Good news, US Homes


is owned by Lennar Communities, a Giant Corporation. They along with


KB Homes are the two biggest residential builders in the country, which


means they have very deep pockets. Keep in touch with your neighbors


as people move into the development. Track as best you can if problems


within your property are being experienced by other owners as well. I’m


involved in the construction defect litigation side of our business and find


some very basic observations with regard to new construction. The


problems you have will not be unique to your structure. In fact, we typically find problems are consistent in floor plan groups. Plan “A” will


have these (20) items, plan “B” these (15) items, plan “C” these (25) items and so on. We also find the floor plans will most likely have some


common deficiencies, (Faulty window flashing, roof flashing, etc…). In any case its all part of the new home purchase process. In my area of California, we in the business say there are two types of developments,


those that are in litigation and those that are going to be in litigation. icon_idea.gif

13

Originally Posted By: ccoombs
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Wow Will! You make me want to go out buy a new home! (Please know I’m joking)


There is truth to what Will is saying. The home is the last hand made product produced in America. And there are thousands of things that can go wrong. However, my experience with US Homes and Lennar is very positive. I have worked for and would buy a home built by US Homes/Lennar. I would not by a KB home.

Although it is late in the game for an independent inspector, I think there is still a lot to be gained by hiring one. I believe that an inspector could help build your confidence in your new home...and that is very important.

--
Curtis

14

Originally Posted By: Holly Hunter
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Wow, it’s funny that Will said that you’ll usually find the same problems with the same floor plans, etc. The new builder actually told me that he’s dealing with the exact problem up the block from us where they too added the full bath downstairs i/l/o the powder room. It seems that once the mistake was made they continued it on down the line.


I love the suggestion to get to know the neighbors as we move in thus being able to find out when anyone’s having issues…very smart suggestion. My 3 sons will be the ticket to getting me outdoors and meeting them icon_smile.gif


Curtis and Will, I feel encouraged by your confidence in US Homes and Lenar Corp… Our current home is a Greystone (bought out by Lenar I believe) and we’ve been extremely happy (not a single problem).


When we walked into the model for our new home we knew it was the home for us…very functional once we were able to option up by adding the bonus room, turning the formal living room into a “parlor room” (play room), adding the third full bath, etc. The new builder imformed me that US Homes is now abandoning this “semi-custom home” style and moving more to a cookie-cutter type of building. It makes sense to eliminate some of the problems, keep their costs lower and build homes faster thus bringing in more cashflow. I know we’ll be happy once we have the finished product…a much bigger home than we’re currently in and it’s already gone up $154k on the base price…I’ll stop whining now icon_smile.gif


Thanks again guys. I haven’t ruled out hiring an inspection firm but have to be honest that I do feel more confident now. All advice has been greatly appreciated.


Holly