Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I need help. I understand that recent real estate market has been crazy and I'm not sure if anyone else has similar issue recently.
Last night, we were told that the homesite was ready for pre-pour inspection (also known as 1st phase inspection). This morning, Our inspector walked in and surprisely found that foundation was just poured!
Now we have missed our opportunity to have 1st inspection. And I'm very disappointed and uncomfortable with this.
I believe they did this intentionally, because we memtioned that every week "please give us heads up so we can have inspection scheduled" and then they said "they will". What they did instead is to inform us when it is ready instead of heads up
Does anyone know what esle we can propose them to make this up? or how can we make sure quality is fine?
I need help. I understand that recent real estate market has been crazy and I'm not sure if anyone else has similar issue recently.
Last night, we were told that the homesite was ready for pre-pour inspection (also known as 1st phase inspection). This morning, Our inspector walked in and surprisely found that foundation was just poured!
Now we have missed our opportunity to have 1st inspection. And I'm very disappointed and uncomfortable with this.
I believe they did this intentionally, because we memtioned that every week "please give us heads up so we can have inspection scheduled" and then they said "they will". What they did instead is to inform us when it is ready instead of heads up
Does anyone know what esle we can propose them to make this up? or how can we make sure quality is fine?
Thank you.
Nothing to "propose" to them as the opportunity is no longer there and obviously they are not going to acquiesce to any requests or demands.
At this point there is no inexpensive way to ensure the quality is "fine" and even if you wanted to pay for the tests the Builder most likely would not allow it. At this point there is no true idea of what has occurred before and during the pour. From this point on all you can do is a visual of what is now there. However most of the municipalities around here are requiring the Builder to have their Foundation Engineer perform a pre-pour inspection and provide the results in writing for the City's files. You can request a copy of that report from the Builder for your files and later use if needed. Most likely they will not provide it. You can also request a copy from the City but you should do that soon as the City may have short retention periods and may not keep a copy of this electronically.
The value of the Engineer's inspection is dependent on the integrity of the Engineer and Builder. Obviously you can see from your opinion of what occurred that integrity may be lacking. As for the Engineer I have gone in after them and found many issues the Engineer completely either passed up or missed.
BTW I have encountered that situation to many times and as an Inspector I like it as little as you do!
Just out of curiosity would you mind sharing the City and Builder name?
Nothing to "propose" to them as the opportunity is no longer there and obviously they are not going to acquiesce to any requests or demands.
At this point there is no inexpensive way to ensure the quality is "fine" and even if you wanted to pay for the tests the Builder most likely would not allow it. At this point there is no true idea of what has occurred before and during the pour. From this point on all you can do is a visual of what is now there. However most of the municipalities around here are requiring the Builder to have their Foundation Engineer perform a pre-pour inspection and provide the results in writing for the City's files. You can request a copy of that report from the Builder for your files and later use if needed. Most likely they will not provide it. You can also request a copy from the City but you should do that soon as the City may have short retention periods and may not keep a copy of this electronically.
The value of the Engineer's inspection is dependent on the integrity of the Engineer and Builder. Obviously you can see from your opinion of what occurred that integrity may be lacking. As for the Engineer I have gone in after them and found many issues the Engineer completely either passed up or missed.
BTW I have encountered that situation to many times and as an Inspector I like it as little as you do!
Just out of curiosity would you mind sharing the City and Builder name?
Sachse, Ashton Woods.
Thanks for your info. They said they can go over city report and engineering report with us but NOT provide a copy to us. Can you give me a little more detail of how to request an inspection copy from the city?
Nothing to "propose" to them as the opportunity is no longer there and obviously they are not going to acquiesce to any requests or demands.
At this point there is no inexpensive way to ensure the quality is "fine" and even if you wanted to pay for the tests the Builder most likely would not allow it. At this point there is no true idea of what has occurred before and during the pour. From this point on all you can do is a visual of what is now there. However most of the municipalities around here are requiring the Builder to have their Foundation Engineer perform a pre-pour inspection and provide the results in writing for the City's files. You can request a copy of that report from the Builder for your files and later use if needed. Most likely they will not provide it. You can also request a copy from the City but you should do that soon as the City may have short retention periods and may not keep a copy of this electronically.
The value of the Engineer's inspection is dependent on the integrity of the Engineer and Builder. Obviously you can see from your opinion of what occurred that integrity may be lacking. As for the Engineer I have gone in after them and found many issues the Engineer completely either passed up or missed.
BTW I have encountered that situation to many times and as an Inspector I like it as little as you do!
Just out of curiosity would you mind sharing the City and Builder name?
What kind of inspector are you? This was an incredibly insightful post.
Thanks for your info. They said they can go over city report and engineering report with us but NOT provide a copy to us. Can you give me a little more detail of how to request an inspection copy from the city?
Thank you for the information as it helps answer the questions.
First I do not see anything in the Sachse Code Of Ordinance where they are requiring the Design Engineer/Builder's Engineer to perform a pre-pour inspection. Also nothing in the Sachse New Construction Packet requiring it. What I would do is to call Sachse Development Services and/or Building Inspections and ask if they do require one be performed and submitted to the City. Just because it is not in their documentation does not necessarily mean they are not requiring it and instead maybe they just have not listed it.
Once you know if they do then you can decide how you want to proceed. However even if they are not collecting an Engineer report there are other valuable records you may well want to obtain and keep on file in the event they are needed later. Sachse's records management policy is described in the Code Of Ordinances (see link above), Chapter 1 General Provisions, Section 1-12 Records management. In the Code of Ordinances under Home Rule Charter, Article XI General Provisions, Section 11.01 Public Records states:
Quote:
All records of the city shall be open to inspection except those that are closed to the public by law. The records may be examined and copied in the city offices during normal office hours at a nominal charge established by the city manager.
I'm not aware of any law that protects Building Inspection records. If you read the New Home Construction packet link above there are some nice records to have! It does not provide directions for how records can be requested but each department does have an assigned Records Officer that manages their records and I fully expect their records requests. The department that would control the building records would be Development Services. I would contact them first and ask what their procedures are for obtaining copies of those records. On top of the records they list in the building packet they would also keep copies of every inspection the City performed on the home and the results of those inspections both pass/fail and why if they did fail. The failed ones are important to note and keep for future use in the event the issue(s) were not properly corrected.
As for Ashton Woods I have not experienced your issue with them but as I always tell my clients the quality of your build is going to be determined almost entirely on the quality of the Build Supervisor. There are some really good Build Supervisors out there but even they can miss issues. The good ones are happy to accommodate your inspections as best they can. After all it is another QC check paid for by you so you can get a good home and they don't have to worry about call backs. They also tend to be the ones who are realistically confident in their abilities.
I have encountered some real doozies in Build Supervisors. Earlier this year I ran into your situation where I arrived on site and concrete was supposedly not being poured until the next day. I got there real early to see the pumper truck setting up and a few minutes later the concrete trucks arriving. I never even set foot on the lot. That same Build Supervisor about a month later, another client and two blocks away, really screwed the pooch. He poured concrete before his own Engineer and the City could get out there for their inspections. WOW that was a real mess!
What kind of inspector are you? This was an incredibly insightful post.
I am a Texas Licensed Professional Inspector #7593. I've been inspecting since 2004 and almost all my business anymore is new construction from T-Poles and subterranean plumbing inspections all the way through to one year warranty inspections. Because of my detailed inspection protocols and reports I tend to attract detail oriented clients. I like it as it keeps me on my toes and helps them a great deal too!
Thank you for the information as it helps answer the questions.
First I do not see anything in the Sachse Code Of Ordinance where they are requiring the Design Engineer/Builder's Engineer to perform a pre-pour inspection. Also nothing in the Sachse New Construction Packet requiring it. What I would do is to call Sachse Development Services and/or Building Inspections and ask if they do require one be performed and submitted to the City. Just because it is not in their documentation does not necessarily mean they are not requiring it and instead maybe they just have not listed it.
Once you know if they do then you can decide how you want to proceed. However even if they are not collecting an Engineer report there are other valuable records you may well want to obtain and keep on file in the event they are needed later. Sachse's records management policy is described in the Code Of Ordinances (see link above), Chapter 1 General Provisions, Section 1-12 Records management. In the Code of Ordinances under Home Rule Charter, Article XI General Provisions, Section 11.01 Public Records states:
I'm not aware of any law that protects Building Inspection records. If you read the New Home Construction packet link above there are some nice records to have! It does not provide directions for how records can be requested but each department does have an assigned Records Officer that manages their records and I fully expect their records requests. The department that would control the building records would be Development Services. I would contact them first and ask what their procedures are for obtaining copies of those records. On top of the records they list in the building packet they would also keep copies of every inspection the City performed on the home and the results of those inspections both pass/fail and why if they did fail. The failed ones are important to note and keep for future use in the event the issue(s) were not properly corrected.
As for Ashton Woods I have not experienced your issue with them but as I always tell my clients the quality of your build is going to be determined almost entirely on the quality of the Build Supervisor. There are some really good Build Supervisors out there but even they can miss issues. The good ones are happy to accommodate your inspections as best they can. After all it is another QC check paid for by you so you can get a good home and they don't have to worry about call backs. They also tend to be the ones who are realistically confident in their abilities.
I have encountered some real doozies in Build Supervisors. Earlier this year I ran into your situation where I arrived on site and concrete was supposedly not being poured until the next day. I got there real early to see the pumper truck setting up and a few minutes later the concrete trucks arriving. I never even set foot on the lot. That same Build Supervisor about a month later, another client and two blocks away, really screwed the pooch. He poured concrete before his own Engineer and the City could get out there for their inspections. WOW that was a real mess!
Appreciate your detailed reply at late night! I will keep updating this post.
Ps. So far it’s sales rep keeping us updated. Not a sign that we have a good builder supervisor yet
Last edited by PoeticOcelot; 10-26-2021 at 10:26 PM..
Got the report from city. It’s very simple piece of paper, just saying “pass” , date 10/22 Friday, inspector name, company
Afterwards we went to builder. Ask him when he informed city for inspection. He hesitated a while then said Monday (not sure if he lying or forgot, more likely trying to lie)
Got the report from city. It’s very simple piece of paper, just saying “pass” , date 10/22 Friday, inspector name, company
Afterwards we went to builder. Ask him when he informed city for inspection. He hesitated a while then said Monday (not sure if he lying or forgot, more likely trying to lie)
Hah, I like #9 "If deemed necessary by the building inspector". Why wouldn't it be deemed necessary??
When the City passes the inspection (whichever phase or inspection) there is nothing more to write except pass. However you have piqued my curiosity now. What "company" name was listed there for that inspection? If it was a City performed inspection why would they need that?
What I do recommend is that you visit the site regularly and watch what is occurring. If you have any questions about something you think might be an issue you should contact your Inspector and have them explain it. That has multiple benefits. First you will get a better understanding of the home and how it was being built. If it is an issue then it can be addressed quicker when it would take less time, money, and possibly prevent other issues. From the Inspector's perspective if issues are identified early and corrected as needed that is less they have to write up later at the next phase inspection.
One more recommendation for you. If the Builder is following the Building Codes and City requirements then the plans will always be on site. Typically they are located in a plastic packet at the front door or other visible location. In that packet may be other really helpful information such as permit info, any City inspection tags (red and green) and other. If you get a chance take a high resolution pictures of all items. The plans are typically long sheets and a high resolution picture of the whole page can be expanded to view details. This will allow you, and your Inspector, to better understand anything they are seeing. It also saves you from making an information request to the City for those items as described in a previous post.
City said it was inspected by a 3rd party company named Bureau Veritas. I thought they had their own inspector
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
