issues with new home.
 

i bought a new townhouse and having couple of issues with it. i have already approached the builder but not getting a positive response. im wondering what and how car can i take it. and if somebody have had similar exp.


major issue. main door is letting alot of cold air in.Air was leaking in from bottom and lower side of the door (key side) and living room is cold. its been ok weather recently so i haven't had much problem but. i reported the problem to builder, he sent out some handy man who put a weather strip. (adisive type in the front of the door (facing outside) and under the door. that strip under the door is already coming off, its those adhesive type.

my problem with this is, when shutting the door from outside i have pull hard to lock the door (feel the door handle is going to pop out) and i think its not a permanent fix.

minor issue . not much of an issue but something that bothered me. this house was new. and at the time had no fridge when we decided to purchase. when we moved in, started using the fridge, realized that it had no light in freezer and no freezer control. when i went to the model suit. i saw it had a way better fridge. (this is what the builder did) he went and bought new fridge for my place, and other unsold units., got better quality fridge and put them in the unsold unit and display unit, and gave me the fridge that was originally in the model unit.
now i know this might not be a big deal,as he gave me what i saw in model home, but he gave me the unit that was in the model unit itself replacing that with better model.. its just something that bothered me.
:okay:


anyhow what and how far can i go with these issues, im kinda getting irritated with them trying to put band-air solution for the door. not something long term like replace the whole weather strip.

to be honest in the "model" home, I'm sure in the contract you signed, there must be somewhere that says "actual unit might not be exactly the same" blah blah blah to protect themselves.

I was super surprised to even have the builder come in to even do a strip for you.

They should have used someting like this that screws in. There's also a "u" version that slips under the door.

http://www.rona.ca/images/0412390_L.jpg

http://www.rona.ca/en/door-weatherstrip

that means either the door wasn't sized properly or gaps in workmanship. same as buying a new car with scratches on it..?:badpokerface:

thanks anyways.

most likely wasnt hung properly if there are gaps in the side

if you dont have a bottom sweep like the one posted above on the door currently u should probably grab one of those

as for the door, it's simple to find out what the problem is, go grab a level and take a look at each side to see what's off. You can do simple quick adjustments with just a drill bit and a few extra screws.

but the quality of homes here in Vancouver, well they build them like shit to be honest with you. I guarantee you will find more issues just like this one over time, so what I'm saying is you can't be picky really, I mean unless it's a custom multi million dollar home...
just use this opportunity to teach yourself a little DIY, you won't regret it, feels awesome doing things with your own two hands, a real sense of accomplishment

My personal opinion on new home construction, they build the houses to last about 20 years, I seen the construction from homes done decades ago is better than the shit they put together nowadays.
When I'm in the Eastcoast looking at the homes there, all brick mortar and all that good shit, no lame ass wood like here, just makes me laugh

^^ Agreed.

If you take a look around, and look at all the leaky condo's. They aren't the concrete construction ones in the 70's and 80's.. They're all the newer 90's+ wood built highrises.. Construction quality is a joke sometimes. =/

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For your fridge, I don't think you are going to really get anywhere.. Only thing I could see would be a credit if that.. Or an exchange... maybe.

For the door your probably SOL. Get the rubber stopper as posted above and get some adhesive tape for the sides. DIY :thumbsup:

Several posters mentioned about the Door fixes and I agree (probably not hung or leveled).

As for the fridge, I'd review the sales contract to see what is "included" and all the legal terms and jargon that go with it.

My boyfriend had some issues with his duplex (wires still poking out, no cover for the circuit breaker, didn't install a washroom fan..etc) He called them many many times and never ever bother coming and fixing it. This may sound racist or stereotypical..but I find a lot of houses build by brown people make the crappiest house ever =/ Of course not ALL brown people, I've seen some pretty good ones.

The only thing you can do is get someone to fix it or do it by yourself.

Try contacting the 2-5-10 warranty place (forgot the name) if all else fails.

Had issues with our our old duplex. Would call the builder and they would never respond or come to fix it.

Got fed up and just called the 2-5-10 place. Basically mentioned we are getting fed up because the builder never responds or calls us back and these issues are clearly covered under the 2 year warranty.

Wrote a letter of complaint, and sent pictures of the issues and mailed to 2-5-10. Pretty much the builders called right away and got all the issues fixed within 2 weeks of sending in the letter.

goodluck

a 300k townhome gets level 1 finishing essentially, in the past 2 years our company has built probably 200 units in your typical 3 story attached townhomes

you get what you pay for i guess, alot of people buying the units we build expect exceptional quality when for the price, it just isnt possible.

I'll never buy a new home or pre-sale again. I got totally screwed over with the final product....some many short-cuts were taken, different materials and products were used, and once its done it is impossible to have someone come and fix.

Basically, if you don't catch stuff in your final walk-thu, you are stuck with it.

I was pretty disappointed.

^ can you clarify hondaracer? Do you mean to say new home owners should expect the simplest of problems like leaks etc... and that's supposed to be normal because they did didn't pay millions for the property?

I've been to countless new homes having to fix the stupidest shit wherein these homes were built by big name companies, its mind boggling some of the shit that I've seen
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This is mainly true unless you personally know the guy or its a really important project for their company. Every other house they do they cut all the corners they can, skimp out on everything they can to try to quicken build times and save money.

Our house was partly renovated by a brown guy and most of the drywall screws have popped out of the paint leaving holes everywhere, ceiling moldings are cracking amongst other small stuff aswell. All happened within 2 months. Luckily we knew the guy and got him to send someone to fix it.

one thing i realized is that the show homes/presentation centers can be built using 1 contractor but the building built by another. meaning the show home can be built by good quality sub-trades where the actual condo themselves can use sub-contractors that are :heckno:

First thing you'd do or at least expect to do when buying a home is inspecting it and finding out if it meets your needs or expectations. I think, when buying a pre-sale home you're allowing someone to build it for you as they see fit. You can't possibly put all the materials or building procedures and practices in the sale contract. So much can be changed between the sale and the end product that you'll never know.

It's unfortunate but realistically you have to expect some deficiencies, unless you build it yourself.
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I was once sub-contracted for work on a couple show homes, and another sub-contractor was hired for the balance of the development. A couple months into construction of the main development, I was sub-contracted to correct the work of the other sub-contractor, because after multiple attempts they were unable to pass inspection. The development was branded as "luxury residences," built in quite a nice area, and were very expensive ($799k for a row house iirc, East of the Fraser).

Yep, I did the same with my apartment. the builder and never answer my phone after I fax in all my deficiency. after 3 weeks i open a case with the 2-5-10 warranty place, the builder come and fix all the shit the same weekend

i know that feel bro :lawl:
feels like bait 'n switch for potential homeowners.

No no, you should definately expect like quality workmanship and doors to be hung properly, windows etc all plumbing, electrical, etc should be at or above code no matter what you buy when buying new

When I refer to the finishing it's moreso stuff like your spray coat on ceilings/drywall, mud and sanding coats, paint, quality of baseboards and laminate flooring, etc

For almost all newer town homes from 200-350k you get "level 1" finishing so you get like 1 initial spray coat primer, 1 pass with mud and sanding, usually 2 coats of paint, cheaper material baseboards etc

Not to say there is anything wrong with any of that persay, but like issues that arise with these products are due to the initial quality usually not installation
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Just a thought, when buying a house or any type of living space (new or old) would it be a good idea to get a house inspector to inspect the house?

That's a no brainer for what it costs, but with a new home your warrantee will typically cover any issues if you don't
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