My house was built in 2005. I bought it in 2007 and I am the only owner for this property. It is in a town home complex but my home is a stand-alone and does not share walls with anyone. The builder went into bankruptcy shortly after I bought the place. There was a lawsuit pending against the builder from people in the complex but because I am the only one with the problems I will describe, they said I would have to file my own lawsuit. I am not litigious and since he went bankrupt it all just seems like nonsense to me.


Anyway, the problem is that the plant shelf in my living room is separating from the wall in the hallway. Also, the nails are popping out of the wall, and the heads appear rusty, in the hallway and the ceiling near the attic entrance is cracking. There is a large crack in the concrete slab that my house sits on (as wide as an inch in a few places) that runs from the garage, northwest through the house and ends at the end of the slab under the spare bedroom. The bathroom tile keeps popping up near the crack running through the bathroom.

Should I have a home inspector come out or is this normal for settling? How can I repair the plant shelf and cracks? Do I just cover the nail holes or should I be concerned?

 

Welcome to the forums! Can we assume the top picture is in the correct position (ie. up is up)? I think you have nailed the problem with the crack in the slab. It, alone, can cause the problems you are seeing. I would have a good home inspector come in and give an analysis, so you will have a good starting point. Sometimes cracks are inevitable, but an inch or so in a slab will have resounding effects throughout the house.

 

The green should be at the top for the picture to be oriented properly. It is sideways on my computer.

Thanks for your response.