Cracks: Is this normal & what's the best way to repair?

Our home was built in 2013. Although we chose everything from the floorplan to the doorknobs, we knew very little about construction and it was a steep learning curve. Five years in, I'm left wondering if every little kink is either part of the normal aging of a house (with 2 toddlers living in it) or a sign of poor workmanship.

One of my biggest concerns right now are small cracks that I've noticed in a couple of walls (see attached photos). One is at an arched wall between two rooms, and another is along a wall just below the second-floor landing. Most concerning is that these cracks are also beginning to show between the wall and the stairway.

Is this normal? Is this a sign of deeper issues in the construction? And what is the best way to repair it? Is there something we can do to ensure this isn't happening every 5 years, but is instead done right?

Thanks in advance!

 

Welcome to the forums!

Looks like a settlement crack. I'd use drywall tape and mud to repair it. Might need a slight coat of texture to make it blend with the rest of the wall.

 

Cracks like that are pretty common, you stated the house is 5 years old, did these just occur or have they been there all the time?

 

Where are you located? Seasonal changes in temperature and humidity can cause the wood used to frame the house to expand and contract. It may be a minute amount but over a few years it can cause minor cracking, mainly at the joints between sheets of sheetrock. At the more extreme end you may notice doors that stick during certain seasons. Your first picture looks like the joint between sheets of sheetrock cracking while your second looks more like the corner bead which is used to reinforce corners.

The cracks aren't an indication of a structural problem but they do pose a dilemma for repair. Anything you do is going to require repainting. If you try to just touch-up the repair it might show and possibly look worse than the small crack. Painting the entire wall is sometimes better but if your home is a modern open floor plan it can be hard to find a good place to stop painting. For minor cracks like yours I tend to just let them go until they get bad enough to really bug me or it's time for the room to be repainted or hold off for remodeling time.