With this in mind, we do our best to catch deficiencies early and work hard to solve the issue quickly.
To avoid any problems in the first place, we thought of an elegant solution – just build good houses that last and avoid deficiencies altogether.
We adhere to HBO’s policy on customer service: “The best way to handle a disappointed customer is to make sure they don’t become one in the first place”.
The Home Builder’s Association lists the following as the most common complaints from homeowners:
| Complaint | Percentage of overall complaints |
|---|---|
| Walls/Drywall | 13% |
| Bathrooms | 8% |
| Exterior Doors | 8% |
| Basements | 6% |
| Windows | 6% |
| Linoleum | 5% |
| Interior Doors | 5% |
| Cupboards | 5% |
| Carpet | 4% |
| Squeaky Floors | 4% |
| Interior Paint | 3% |
| Condensation | 3% |
| Heating | 3% |
| Garage Floor | 3% |
| Foundations | 3% |
Here are the proactive processes we follow so you don’t encounter deficiencies:
Before you see the home, we do a builder’s walkthrough to help catch all minor deficiencies. We say “minor” because there are no major deficiencies by the time the house is done.
After the builder walkthrough, we do an orientation walk through with you. We want you to be impressed when you walk into your house for the first time, and the orientation is where it happens.
Orientation is where you get the opportunity to see if everything is in order. With your approval, we’ll have you sign off that we delivered you a deficiency-free home that will last for decades to come.
Drywall issues are visible immediately upon your first inspection of the house. More complaints come from poor framing that shows itself 6 or 9 months after the build.
Upon your 1 year inspection, we’ll be able to address any of these problems, but we usually avoid them because of the steady workmanship of our framers.
We glue, nail, and screw-down all of our floors to keep them from squeaking.
This is a huge problem for homeowners, and we know it. Providing non-squeaking floors is vital.
Many builders use metal exterior doors, which dent, expand, scratch, and warp very easily. Often they’re already damaged by the time you move into your house, so we avoid them at all costs (we simply don’t use them in any of our homes).
We exclusively use fibreglass exterior doors to prevent any of that from happening. They last longer, and look better for a much longer time. While it might seem smart to cheap out on your doors during construction, you’ll regret it a year from now.
Garage floors can crack due to poor sub-grade or failing to install rebar. By using rock-based subgrade or well-placed rebar, we can avoid these types of issues entirely.
