The last several months have been a bit up and down for us. These pictures are the TWO houses we have been under contract for, but are not getting. This is the most recent house. We just terminated the contract on Tuesday.
come with shed and big yard
tree house
and a foundation that sits 6 inches lower on the left side!
The owners are in denial of sorts. To address our foundation repair cost analysis, they got a structural engineer (they didn't know Josh was one) to look at it and say the building was sound.
The engineer did not address continued and future movement of the house. Plus, I will spare you the pics Josh took of all the cracks of the interior and exterior that they patched up- pretty good job by the way.
For those interested, here is a part of our response to the owners. A bit long, and only for those who really care, like Josh's dad.
Funny though that Josh is a structural engineer.
He signed "Joshua S. Black, P.E."
Here is the first house we were under contract for:
So cute. I loved the area and the curb appeal
Nice open kitchen and family room, 2500 sq feet.
comes with swing set! small but cute little yard (this is just the left half of the yard)
...and a roof that needed to be completely replaced.
The cost was $6000. They said they would replace the roof, but were unwilling to fix the other FHA required repairs, which we, ourselves, couldn't fund (at least $3,000). Besides that, by the time this went down, we were relieved to get out of it. It just didn't feel right.
come with shed and big yard
tree house
and a foundation that sits 6 inches lower on the left side!The owners are in denial of sorts. To address our foundation repair cost analysis, they got a structural engineer (they didn't know Josh was one) to look at it and say the building was sound.
The engineer did not address continued and future movement of the house. Plus, I will spare you the pics Josh took of all the cracks of the interior and exterior that they patched up- pretty good job by the way.
For those interested, here is a part of our response to the owners. A bit long, and only for those who really care, like Josh's dad.
Dear Mr. Brown,
In response to your latest email I am writing to explain our decision for terminating the contract for the 4415 Lakeway property. The primary reason for the decision was, in fact, related to the foundations. Although the reports by Criterium-Flynn indicate that no stabilization is required, we felt that the risk for further building movement remains unaddressed. As a structural engineer practicing in the area I myself have dealt with many foundation problems and I can tell you that partial underpinning of a structure is one of the worst things you can do. The post-tensioned slab on grade foundation system described in the report is meant to float on top of the soils to minimize building distress and foundation cracking. By putting a hard support under one side of the building you severely limit the structure's ability to adjust to seasonal moisture changes in a uniform manner. In other words, partial underpinning will almost always result in future differential movement problems.
I agree with the engineer's report that the individual components of the foundation system are structurally sound. Despite this assertion, most individuals that I associate with would agree that a differential settlement of 6 inches across such a small footprint would be regarded as a global foundation failure. Acceptable design differential movement for most structures is around 1 inch regardless of building footprint. Under special circumstances where the structure is not sensitive to building movements and interior finishes would not be affected, a differential settlement of up to 3 inches MIGHT be acceptable. I therefore strongly disagree with the engineer's assertion that a slope of 1 inch every 10 feet is normal and acceptable. That type of building slope can be felt and even visually perceived. While this may not make the property entirely unlivable, it does make is a much riskier investment, especially considering the potential for future movement. If it is hard to sell now, it will be even harder to sell in 5 or 6 years after the building has settled an additional 2-3 inches. The engineer asserts that building distress above the foundation represents only cosmetic, non-structural damage. Such non-structural elements represent a significant portion of the investment and the potential for damage to these elements cannot be ignored.
In response to your latest email I am writing to explain our decision for terminating the contract for the 4415 Lakeway property. The primary reason for the decision was, in fact, related to the foundations. Although the reports by Criterium-Flynn indicate that no stabilization is required, we felt that the risk for further building movement remains unaddressed. As a structural engineer practicing in the area I myself have dealt with many foundation problems and I can tell you that partial underpinning of a structure is one of the worst things you can do. The post-tensioned slab on grade foundation system described in the report is meant to float on top of the soils to minimize building distress and foundation cracking. By putting a hard support under one side of the building you severely limit the structure's ability to adjust to seasonal moisture changes in a uniform manner. In other words, partial underpinning will almost always result in future differential movement problems.
I agree with the engineer's report that the individual components of the foundation system are structurally sound. Despite this assertion, most individuals that I associate with would agree that a differential settlement of 6 inches across such a small footprint would be regarded as a global foundation failure. Acceptable design differential movement for most structures is around 1 inch regardless of building footprint. Under special circumstances where the structure is not sensitive to building movements and interior finishes would not be affected, a differential settlement of up to 3 inches MIGHT be acceptable. I therefore strongly disagree with the engineer's assertion that a slope of 1 inch every 10 feet is normal and acceptable. That type of building slope can be felt and even visually perceived. While this may not make the property entirely unlivable, it does make is a much riskier investment, especially considering the potential for future movement. If it is hard to sell now, it will be even harder to sell in 5 or 6 years after the building has settled an additional 2-3 inches. The engineer asserts that building distress above the foundation represents only cosmetic, non-structural damage. Such non-structural elements represent a significant portion of the investment and the potential for damage to these elements cannot be ignored.
Funny though that Josh is a structural engineer.
He signed "Joshua S. Black, P.E."
Here is the first house we were under contract for:
So cute. I loved the area and the curb appeal
Nice open kitchen and family room, 2500 sq feet.
comes with swing set! small but cute little yard (this is just the left half of the yard)...and a roof that needed to be completely replaced.
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