Newly Built Home Inspection Nightmares

Recommend filling these openings with concrete or a concrete caulk to stop water from entering behind the stone.

The brick has been stained from water leaks it is important to look on the inside of the home for water leaks/stains.

The bricks have separated 1″ in the center of the garage door opening.This garage door beam was undersized when installed. This is a serious issue and will need to be repaired.

This type of overhang over the front door looks very nice but we often find serious water leaking issues at the base of the front entry or the garage ceiling.

When ever you see a home where the upper level bedroom sits over the top of the garage we recommend to look close at the garage ceiling, attic in the garage and under the bedroom windows above.  This is a very common area for water leaks.

Both these exterior windows have been heavily caulked at the top of the windows with clean silicone, this indicates past water leaks.  When you see this look very close at the interior of the windows for water stains or current leaks.

This is another photo of a new home where the deck builder missed nailing several of the deck nails into the supporting beam.

This is a brand new house and the concrete was poured incorrect and is slopped back toward the garage.

Missing railings on these deck stairs. This is a safety hazard and possible FHA concern.

This is another photo of a newer home that this wood under the chimney did not get covered with siding / soffit material.

The main supporting beam should have lag screwed to the support post to properly secure the deck.

This home is less than 2 years old and we found that all the front porch concrete pillar caps were not properly secured to the base.

Concrete patio was poured incorrectly with a slope back toward the home.

This retaining wall is falling over, it has moved approx. 1.5ft.  It appeared to be installed properly using dead men for support but it was discovered  that the dead men were fake. and that is why the wall had been moved.

This new home was not graded properly and should have gutters installed.

This back yard could have serious water troubles as the yard is sloped back toward the home.

We recommend caulking where the siding and the concrete/block walls come together.

Evidence of heavy ice build up where the house and the garage come together. When you see this make sure you look close at the interior of the garage and the interior of the home on the floor and the wall.

Always check both sides of a garage door for damage.

This water stain is where the house and the garage come together, this is a very common area to find water stains in a garage.  If you find this it is important if all possible to get into the garage attic, and also on the other side of the garage wall in the interior of the home for water stains or damage.

You think these shingles look great in this 3year old home, well when you get on the roof and find out there is a couple hundred nail pops.  This new roof will need to be replaced. 

When you find a roof area like this, it is common that you will get ice build up, this photo also has some wire in it that is actually heat wire for ice. 

This is a photo of water pan that was installed to protect the electrical panel in case the sink plumbing lines leaked in the main floor bathroom.  We checked with a local code inspector on this one and his answer was it was not a good idea to place a water line or waste line directly above a electrical panel but it was not a code issue. (Hard to believe this is acceptable) If you are not sure of a answer always make a call to a professional.

Spliced wires should always go into a junction box. (safety hazard) Home owners become their own electrician.

All spliced electrical wires should be placed into a electrical junction box for safety. Another home owner becoming a electrician.

These next two photos are of a brand newly built home, the supporting post under the basement staircase are bowed approx. 2 in.We recommend to have this repaired before moving in.  (New Home)

This photo goes with the one to the left.(New Home)

This is a ridge vent that has never been cut open, this will stop the air from venting out of your home.

We recommend that a ridge vent should be cut open 3″ wide; this one is only 1″ wide.  This will not allow proper ventilation out of the attic.

This is a photo of a roof vent that has been removed, new shingles were installed over it.  The issue is that when the shingles were installed the hole should have been re-supported before installing new shingles.

This photo indicates what can happens when roof sheathing clips are not installed.  The lower section of sheathing has bowed, if a roof clip was installed this would not happen.

Mold on the attic sheathing. This Home was not vented properly. 

This gas fireplace is burning exhaust that is much too rich, and that is why it is black above the exhaust. We recommend hiring a company that specializes in gas fireplaces.

Most interior walls cracks like this one are normal settling.

This is signs of Termites in a 2 year home.

These interior wood floors are warped and the boards are separating, this is normally caused from a water leak and is normally found on a exterior wall.  If you see this make sure you look down below in the basement or crawl space area for further damaged areas.

Do your best to look behind all beds and furniture, especially the ones on the exterior walls.

Water stains were found at the base of this entry door their is a good chance the door is leaking water, we recommend to hire a licensed contractor to repair the door.

This wood floor is has warped more than normal near the sliding door, we recommend to have licensed contractor come in and check the door for water leaks.

This is another photo of a new home and we found water stains in the daylight basement area.  Even if the home is new it is important to have it professionally inspected.

Water stains were found at the base of the window. This is a newer home and the window is already leaking water.

If you look close at this window you will see it is fogy, this window has a broken thermal seal.  (Newer Home)

This home is only 2 years old but it is still very important to inspect every spindle in the railing system, we found two that were cracked and glued back together.

This home is two years old and we found that water was leaking into the corner of the basement. This was happening due to poor grading.

This is a photo where the lights were moved in the laundry room and the drywall company did a very poor job.

Bathroom sink drains very slow, this means that the trap below is normally blocked and will need to be cleaned.

This brand new home shower surround is leaking water. Very important to test this. Try your best to run water up against the shower glass wall to test. Sometimes you can run water all you want and you won’t find leaks until you actually take a shower.

This is another photo of a newer shower door that is leaking water, always make sure you run every shower and check closely.

If you fill the bathroom tub and the water looks like this turn the water off drain the tub and re fill it, sometimes if the water has not been run in a while to that location it will come out discolored.  If it comes out discolored the second time you most likely need a water softener. Call a professional and have your water tested.

This dryer vent is not connected. Always take the time to look behind the dryer.

This is probably the worse installed dryer vent I have ever seen.