Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Jul 11, 2015 8:21 pm Hi all, A house that I am thinking of making an offer on has some cracks, and I'm not sure if they are purely cosmetic or something worse... The house was built in 2012 on a subdivided lot around ~400m2. I believe the block has been cut and filled. Most houses in this area are built on crappy clay soil, class H. The house had a number of cracks, generally around the ceiling cornices. I would estimate they were 1-2mm wide. There was also a large crack in a paved patio that rests on, or is part of the slab. Plus I found a bit of weirdness where it looks like the plaster board wall has moved down...? And gotten crumpled at the bottom. Pictures here: http://imgur.com/a/HvYio Is this amount of cracking after ~3 years considered normal? Obviously I would not purchase any house without a having building inspection done, but if this amount of cracking is considered bad or unusual then I will probably pass on the house entirely. Re: Are these cornice cracks unusual? 2Jul 11, 2015 8:47 pm Looks a bit average to me. If you are really keen on it you could put in an offer subject to building inspector. It will cost you say maybe $300 to get one through but its a small cost for piece of mind and they are professionals so will be able to give you the fact. Our Build Thread - JG king Memphis Re: Are these cornice cracks unusual? 3Jul 11, 2015 8:49 pm Based on the pictures the join cracks look like they are just due to gap fillet which has been painted over (which has some flexibility, unlike the paint). The concrete crack looks superficial Re: Are these cornice cracks unusual? 4Jul 12, 2015 11:20 am Hi Shocking From the photos its appears these cracks are on going and have previously been repaired I suggest you get a copy of the structural and site report, the council should have that, then arrange for a structural/building report with an Engineer. I hope its a cheap fixer-upper...Goodluck Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Just to makea point about this, an approach that some people have found sucessful in negotiating these rises down, Is to provide some workings to the builder, specifying… 4 81774 The photo is not really clear but to me it looks like twist in the cornice. Slight anticlockwise rotation at the top of the cornice and slightly clockwise at bottom should… 8 8604 |