Is there such a thing?  To a reasonable, well informed person there are no ”perfectly constructed” homes.  To the unreasonable, misinformed person, the term causes a big headache in our industry.

Let’s elaborate on the term “reasonable”.  Is it reasonable in a newly constructed home to expect there to be no drywall cracks throughout the walls?  Yes.  To expect that the doors don’t hit the frame when closing?  Indeed.  To expect that the wood flooring isn’t missing boards?  Absolutely.

Now, is it unreasonable to expect the garage floor slab to not have any hairline cracks?  Yes.  To expect that there won’t be a 1/16 inch gap between the baseboard and drywall?  Indeed.  To expect that there won’t be any wood putty filling the nail holes in the trim?  Absolutely.

Of course, there are many, many different styles of homes with different materials used by different trade contractors.  However, the expectation of workmanship should stay consistent across the field.

New home construction is one of the last, truly man made products.  For this reason, we should, and I must say most people do, expect that there is a certain margin of error in construction or what we consider “tolerances”.

What we ask of everyone is to study up on these tolerances so that you can have a proper expectation for your “walk through”.  Would we expect you to read it front to back and memorize every acceptable tolerance?  Of course not.  However, speaking from experience, there are still people out there expecting perfection in construction and a preliminary education prior to the “walk through” can help to produce a more seamless transaction for all parties involved.

A great resource for this information is the “Residential Construction Performance Guidelines” written by the NAHB Remodelors Councel and Business Management.

I’m sure a good 90% or more of us have lost files on our computers due to a hard drive crash or by accident.  I recently found a really cool program/online account that will eliminate the fear of losing files again.

Everyone has probably heard of online storage sites.  Well, this is an online storage site but it’s also a syncing site.  Not only are you backing up your files, but your files are synced in real time as well.

This works perfectly for syncing computers within your home or if you have partners/employees that are remotely working from a different office or from home.

Simply set up a folder/multiple folders on your computer to be “synced” and whatever changes happen within that folder (moving, adding, deleting, changing files) are automatically updated on every computer that’s synced.  All of this happens instantly!  It’s really an amazing setup.

I tested it out with two laptops side by side that I “synced”.  I drug a file into my “synced” folder on laptop 1 and it immediately showed up in the “synced” folder on laptop 2.  I deleted the file and it immediately disappeared.  It works perfectly for my business because I have employees that work in the field and rarely come to the office.  We always need to share files and pictures which can be close to impossible through email with large files.

It’s called SugarSync.  They have free accounts that have 2 gigabytes of storage and it’s only $4.99/month for 30 gigabytes of storage.  Check it out.

We’ve all heard about it. You should purchase a warranty or buy new construction because when “the toilet leaks at 2am on Sunday morning, you’ll be covered”.

Well, it most definitely happens.  Actually, the story goes more like “I got up to get a midnight snack and thought I was still dreaming when it was raining in my kitchen, my hardwood was saturated and when I finally found my builder’s number, they didn’t answer!”

Emergency warranty situations are not common, however, when they do occur prompt attention is required.

Builders have enough to worry about.  They don’t need the added stress of wondering how many of their, possibly hundreds, of closed homes are going to spring a leak or lose heat in the dead of winter.

Furthermore, homeowners deserve the peace of mind that if such a situation were to occur, they have a number that they can call 24/7/365 for immediate assistance.

Cascade Builder Services supplies this peace of mind.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Kidde Model PI2000 Dual Sensor Smoke Alarms

Units: About 94,000

Manufacturer: Walter Kidde Portable Equipment Inc., of Mebane, N.C.

Hazard: An electrostatic discharge can damage the unit, causing it not to warn consumers of a fire.

Incidents/Injuries: The firm has received two reported incidents of smoke alarm malfunctions involving electrostatic discharge during installation. No injuries have been reported.

Description: This recall involves Kidde dual sensor smoke alarms model PI2000. The alarms can be identified by two buttons, “HUSH” and “PUSH AND HOLD TO TEST WEEKLY,” which are located on the front/center of the alarm. The model number and date code are on the back of the smoke alarm. Only date codes 2008 Aug.01 through 2009 May 04 are included in this recall.

Sold at: Retail, department, and hardware stores and through electrical distributors nationwide from August 2008 through May 2009 for between $30 and $40.

Manufactured in: China

Remedy: Consumers should contact Kidde immediately to receive a free replacement smoke alarm.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Kidde toll-free at (877) 524-2086 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.kidde.com

I worked for a third party warranty management company for many years before I started Cascade Builder Services.  Here was their process:

1. Homeowners would mail or fax in their warranty request forms on paper.

2. We would take that paper to the warranty inspection and write notes on it and take it back to an office administrator for data entry into our system.

3. The office administrator would then create a work order on, yep, paper and fax it over to the appropriate trade contractor for completion and send out a warranty determiniation form to the homeowner on, you guessed it, paper.

4. Once the work was complete, we would print an updated report on paper and send it to the appropriate parties.

That doesn’t even include the New Home Orientation paperwork and countless, needless other paperwork they used.

We’ve eliminated 99% of all this paper use.  Our homeowners submit and track warranty claims through our website, trade contractors are updated through our trade network and our New Home Orientations are conducted with tablet PCs, all digital.

Seattle Tacoma Third Party New Construction Warranty Management for Home Builders

As some of you may know, the House of Representatives passed the new home warranty bill, HB 1393, a couple months ago.  This bill was aiming to require all builders in Washington State to back their homes with a new home warranty.  It didn’t end up being passed through the Senate but came pretty close.

I’m sure we will see another similar bill being pushed in the near future.  Should a builder warranty be required by law?

Who hasn’t heard someone say that about a builder because “my cousin’s friend told me that their home had black mold” or something to that effect?

Generally, when someone makes such a statement, it’s related to a homeowner that either:

1. Didn’t properly maintain their home and let small, easily fixed problems get out of hand

2. Didn’t understand how to make a warranty claim or how to contact their builder

3. Had a builder that was slow to respond to warranty claims

I’ve known many builders that build a fantastic home with attention to every last detail and had their buying process as smooth as silk but didn’t follow through with the proper customer service post closing. This follow up failure can tarnish a builders reputation very quickly resulting in fewer referrals.

We’ve implemented two innovative technologies to help builders seamlessly maintain a high level of customer satisfaction post closing.

1. Homeowner Homepage-Every homeowner gets a personal, secure, online account to easily submit and track warranty requests in real-time 24/7/365. No more wondering who’s assigned to what request and when it will be complete.

2. Online Trade Network-Every builder’s trade contractors have an online account with real-time access to their work orders. The trades receive their work orders instantly and update our company instantly resulting in efficient, effective communication. No more hearing “well, we didn’t get that fax, can you send it again”.

These unrivaled features combined with our 24-hour emergency hotline ultimately result in happy homeowners and more referrals.

The Washington State Energy Code (WSEC) needs changing…..says Governor Gregoire. Gregoire created the Climate Advisory Team (CAT) in February of 2007 and they went on to create a report in 2008 recommending to “revise the Washington State Energy Code to achieve a 30 percent reduction in new building energy use”. In addition, the report recommends “substantial efficiency advances in the code as it applies to remodeling, retrofit and equipment replacements”.

Some of the changes being considered include: heightened restrictions on window U-factors, roof insulation, and an assorted combination of requirements mandating high efficiency HVAC equipment, such as, restrictive building envelope options, air leakage control, and efficient water heater provisions.

Should Washington State be implementing such costly, heavy handed changes in the WSEC during such difficult economic times? Would planned, incremental changes be a better solution?

Builders takes great pride in the homes they build and the communities they create. It is their ultimate goal to create long term, lasting value. The homeowner has the exclusive opportunity after possession to understand and provide the appropriate maintenance for the new home. Occasional maintenance will be needed because of normal wear and tear, as maintenance products reach the end of there useful life, and as our environment interacts with our homes. Normal services are required for mechanical systems and the inherent characteristic of many of the materials used in your home. Your home consists of both man made and natural materials and products, these components will interact with each other and the environment. Fluctuations in humidity and temperature will affect your home also resulting in the need for maintenance.

Knowing when and why to perform certain maintenance tasks can sometimes be confusing and easily forgotten. Sign up for a free account here to view recommended schedules, receive automatic reminders and many other convenient features. Also, for video tutorials on many maintenance categories, visit our maintenance page.

Some things may be urgent

Along with routine care, sometimes more immediate action is needed. Putting off even the seemingly minor maintenance can sometimes create more extensive and costly repairs. Neglecting routine maintenance can void warranty coverage on all or part of your new home. By being attentive in providing the necessary care and maintenance for your new home you ensure years of enjoyment as well as uninterrupted warranty coverage.

You may have never heard of this type business.  As far as I know, there is only one, maybe two, businesses in Washington state that provide the same service.  What service is that you ask?  Third-party warranty management for builders.

How many times have you heard someone complain about their builder ignoring, not following through with fixing warranty claims?  It happens often and negatively affects the builder’s reputation.  We solve this and many more problems by giving homeowners many benefits:

• We provide a 3^rd party perspective giving the homeowner a sense of fairness and reason

• Innovative procedures and technology in the field of warranty management

• We provide homeowners with a sense of trust that their builder is motivated to respond to warranty needs

• The builder’s budget for warranty administration is specifically defined

• 24-hour hotline for emergency calls

• Homebuyer’s experience is enhanced resulting in more referrals

• Single source of contact for trades and homeowners reduces confusion

• Frivolous warranty claims are reduced

• We educate homeowners about warranty vs. maintenance

• We clearly and precisely explain the warranty process to homeowners

We also provide homeowners with 24/7/365 access to their current/past warranty claims through a personal online account.  Homeowners will never be “in the dark” again about the status of their warranty claims. Furthermore, it’s virtually unheard of in our area giving builders the opportunity to aggressively market this beneficial, unique feature setting them apart from their competition resulting in more home sales.