By Monte Leeper
Q.
I own a house in the Poconos that has a structural problem. Part of
the structure is now leaning approximately 3 inches and has dropped approximately 3 to 4 inches down in the center of its 16-foot length. The house is about 13-14 years old. Before I begin to repair the house, there is a question of liability. If a 14-year-old house begins to collapse, can the architect, builder or inspecting
jurisdiction (town?) be held responsible? Who should I speak to first?
Your prompt advice will be greatly appreciated as I must fix this before it
starts snowing. (If the roof collapses due to snow, will my homeowner's
insurance cover repair?)
A.
Repairing your house is absolutely the first consideration, especially if
there has been as much movement as you describe. During any repairs,
photograph, measure and document all inadequacies for the purpose of filing
an action against any of the parties you mentioned.
Contact your insurance company first. They may provide legal guidance about the avenues you may pursue. All those involved in the building of the home are responsible,
although you will need to speak to an attorney about your chances of recovering any costs for the losses. Make sure the attorney is familiar with construction and construction law. A specialty such as construction is rather specific, and unfortunately, many attorneys are not experts in this field.
The law has many issues that will need to be addressed, such as statutes of limitations for claims against the individual professions involved in the construction of the home. There may also be precedents for the type of case, changing conditions which may have affected your property, such as adjacent property drainage, and small details caused by third parties, such as plumber or electrician cutting through structural material after the work was done.
I am leery of work done on second homes in remote locations such as the
Poconos, not because all homes there are built the same, but I have seen
several instances where bare-minimum structural systems began to fail. In
speaking with code officials and builders in the Pocono region, I have gathered
that standards lean (pardon the pun) to minimum requirements and there is a
less strict adherence to conservative construction practices. Your home,
along with others I have evaluated, seems consistent with what I have
observed.
When repairing your home, have an architect or engineer with
experience in remediation of construction problems review or provide the
calculations and plans for your work. Before it is too cold to dig, check
the depth of your foundation. Severe settling can be caused by an inadequate
depth or spread of the footing, or if the footing has been placed on soil that
was not virgin or compacted. You may see cracks in the concrete foundation
walls, indicating movement. The beams supporting the floors you described may
not have enough columns for the concentrated loads they are carrying, etc.
Do not guess what the problem is, however. You have too much to lose.
Good Luck!
