In the past couple of months my Wife and I have noticed many signs of our house's foundation settling. The tile floor entry has cracked in a straight line from the front door to about twenty feet back to our hall bathroom, our side door in our garage won't open or close with ease anymore, and our bedroom door, which use to close easy and square, now requires force to shut, and has about an inch gap from the inside of the door frame to the door when closed.

There was a crack in the drywall above the hall bathroom door when we had this home inspected, the inspector said he saw nothing wrong with it and assured us it wasn't an issue. Was the inspector correct? Do these signs of a settling foundation sound serious? If they are, what can we do? Insurance Claim? Law Suit on the builder?

House Information: Built in 1996, Concrete Slab, Single floor, no basement. All the homes in this area of the neighborhood seem to be built on "mounds". Thank you so much for your time,

Matthew and Amber

Matt, how long ago did you buy this home and was your inspector a licensed home inspector? Yes this is a very bad sign and most likely your insurance will not cover it since it may have been a pre-existing issue, not sure yet. If the door worked when you bought the house and now they don't that means the house continues to move/settle. This is likely going to be big and expensive but consult a structural engineer or your city building inspectoer before going any further. Talk to several neighbors about their experiences with settling to see if this is a wide spread problem. A house slab can be jacked but this is not a DIY project for most.

We bought the house about a year and a half ago, and yes the inspector was licensed. I'm leaning more towards a law suit against the builder and or inspector, not attempting to make an insurance claim. Thanks for your response!

Slab houses have all kinds of problems settling. Has your area had substantial rains lately that would help this settling along? I don't know what you can do to the builder as it's been awhile since the house was built. Also, if this problem has just started right before you moved in (you did mention the door used to close properly and now doesn't) means that this is a very recent development. Start with the inspector first and have him come out again and discuss this with you after he examines your house again and sees how it's progressed in it's settling process.

I am not an expert on this matter, however I have lived in 4 homes that I have had built. This house is now approximately 12 years old, shouldn't all this "natural" settling have occurred already? Each builder told me that there would be some normal settling over the next 3 years. This house is 4 times that old.

I would lean toward something else occurring here. Possibly a subterranean problem, I agree, check with all your neighbors to see if this problem is wide spread.

Stringer

Stringer makes a good point, settling should be done after a few years, about 5. If the doors worked 1 1/2 years ago and now do not you may not have an issue with the owmer or inspector. You would have to prove they knew about the problem and failed to disclose it. There can be all sorts of issue with foundations sometimes due to something as simple as poor gutter drainage. Any word from neighbors?

I'm with Bob. Your house has settled and the pad has cracked. Look for the reason. Improper gutter drainage is possibly the cause. Never heard of an insurance policy that covered this kind of problem other than home warranties, which are worded such that they never have to pay. Forget the builder. After 12 years it would be pretty hard to prove defective workmanship and the builder probably doesn't exist anymore anyway. How could the previous owner have known, it hadn't happened yet. You paid the inspector for an opinion, that all. Just an opinion, good, bad or indifferent, just an opinion. Not a warranty.

Look for the reason and take steps to prevent further damage.