2-5-10 Warranty Fail - Construction Fails - Home Inspection

Building a house at the base of a hill, especially in what appears to be a heavy rain area is a recipe for disaster.

What a great idea to have an inspection right before the 2 year claim date.

Custom home buyers should think ahead and add the expense of having a full time inspector who works for & answers to them on site whenever hidden work is being done,all roofing & waterproofing are a MUST for full time inspection as is insulation and ventilation ,im not just some handyman either,im a retired master roofer & waterproofer who ran a 30 to 50 man crew for the nations 2nd largest roofing & waterproofing company so when I say all hidden work must have full time inspection it's from 32 years as a journeyman and 19 years as a senior foreman / master applicator..

I hope to purchase my first home in the next 18 months, and videos like this are good training for some of the problems to look out for-even before we get to inspectors. Thank you for sharing these videos!

we bought a newly built home (Morningstar) in Cloverdale in 2010... and I did this again, I would have hired you to monitor the building of it and done a final inspection. Great videos.

who buys a million dollar home with a 2 year warranty? integrity is certainly missing nowadays with homes. not long ago they would build houses that would last 50-100 years no warranty needed because the people building them took pride in there work . now your lucky to get a 2 year warranty.

Tom Munro this guy is looking out for us!! Thank you

You are the Man! Home builders must shudder when they see you coming. I'll call you the "Velvet Hammer", soft speaking with unassailable credentials. I would love to have my GKids be inspectors like you. Best!

I do agree with all of what you’re saying, except the fact that those stairs weigh 4200 lbs . I highly doubt that

Unless you have a decent way to collect all that water and move it somewhere else, the waterproofing probably won't be enough. And by waterproofing, it should have both a sticky membrane and a dimpled plastic over that to keep ground from being in contact and protect the sticky membrane.

Wish I had done this ..thank you for the next time

1 house built over shallow creek? 2 house built in wrong location where water sits? 3 soil grading away from house was not done? as others have commented, tar or water barrier on foundation probably wont solve this long term. maybe put in a french drain & let gravity drain all the water away

That's why you should only buy a home that you can inspect or have your own inspector while it's being built. Otherwise, you cannot tell if the basement is water proof or not until it dug out again. And never trust the new home warranty, they are created for the builders to avoid liability.

I found it amazing that there was not waterproofing on the basement walls

this house should not have a finished basement period. too much water, clay looking soil with the grade going the wrong way. a really good drain system would help, but i would bet it will always have moisture problems. waterproofing will help, but not a cure.

What a nightmare, almost a million dollar home. Enjoy your videos!

FYI: re: that exterior staircase, water can’t “whisk up” the stringers. That’s because water would “wick up” those stringers. JFC!

Water WICKS up not whisks.

My home inspector had 20/20 vision. He found about 20 defects that cost 20 dollars or less to fix. never hire the inspector that the realtor recommends. If I knew then what I know now, I could have had her realtor license revoked. When you get a nitwit home inspector like the one I had who was recommended by the actual realtor who was supposed to be representing my best interests we get an inspector who is unlikely to to find anything to cancel the sale. Remember, there's three things that's important in the real estate game: commission, commission, commission. The other thing you get with such a nitwit is you will find defects he either missed or did not report. And, you may find them sometimes a couple of years after the sale. The inspector didn't know if the hot water tank had a pop off valve, I asked him. He missed several bad outlets and a couple of bad light fixtures including one ligiht fixture hanging just by the wires. He missed an exterior door rotting. He missed the main breaker box. How do you miss the whole breaker box? He did discover that the bathroom sink didn't have a stopper. Good for him. But, he failed to discover the front door had likely been kicked in, the jam repaired and door literally falling off the hinges. So, spend a day or two to pick your inspector. Don't let your bitchy real estate agent pester you ever 20 minutes on "have you picked an inspector?" Don't be afraid to fire your real estate agent. If the agent is acting in her own best interest and not yours, go to the broker and then go to the licensing board.

Home needs a serious water mitigation system between it and that hill.