I recently purchased a house built in 1999 and I've discovered the foundation is cracked. What do I do?

Question

I recently purchased a house built in 1999 and I've discovered the foundation is cracked. What do I do?

Answer 1

Concrete ALWAYS cracks in some manner. Displacement is the concern here. If you recently purchased the home it is quite common for a home inspection to have been done. If so it would have shown up in his notes but not as a major concern. If you have displacement then it is a matter of how severe. If it is major then you should be contacting your realtor to start the process to inquire if there was a concealment of the problem. Unfortunately, you may be stuck with the problem.

Answer 2

All concrete home foundations develop cracks. It is only a problem if there is movement.

Answer 3

Is the foundation poured concrete or block? If it is block then you will have to get a mason to repair the mortar joints (if needed) and dig up the exterior soil and water proof with a membrane. If the foundation is poured and the wall doesn't seem to be "caving in" you can get an epoxy injection to stop the leak or a foundation waterproofing specialist can dig up the soil on the outside and install a waterproofing membrane.

Answer 4

Not to be a smart #$$, but repair it.

If you had it inspected, that's something the inspector should've found.

If you did have it inspected, well, you've learned a lesson.

Seriously, get a foundation company to come look at it & give you an estimate.

Rule #1 of house buying : ALWAYS get an inspection.

Rule #2 : expect to find something that needs fixing

best of luck

Answer 5

Foundations always crack.  Its the TYPE of crack that is important.  Here is a great resource that can help you id the type you have and explains what to do next.

http://www.inspect-ny.com/structure/foun...

If you had an inspection done and the inspector didn't even note it there are some legal remedies you can take against him if it turns out to be serious.