Residential
Training & Education
Homeowners should ask: Whose fault is it anyway?
November 1, 2014 - “The Home Book: A Complete Guide to Homeowner and Homebuilder Responsibilities” came about as a result of the authors giving expert witness testimony in more than 500 cases alleging defective construction. They noted that the same issues were being tried repeatedly, often with different results.
November 1, 2014 By Anthony Capkun
The lawsuits were long and arduous processes, say the authors, where nobody but the lawyers won. To the authors, it was clear the housing industry could benefit from a series of uniform workmanship standards; a rule book, of sorts, that could be relied upon by builder and homeowner alike. That book, The Home Book, is a compilation of every possible maintenance condition with references to homeowner and homebuilder responsibility.
The authors—homebuilder David MacLellan, architect/developer George Wolfson, AIA, and building code & inspection expert, Douglas Hansen—created The Home Book to help you (as either builder or owner) figure out who is responsible, and what to do.
With over 120 years of professional building and construction experience between them, the authors’ book provides 380 performance guidelines. While the book is geared toward homeowners, it helps to see things from their perspective, and where you may be suspected of fault.
But consider how many conditions may have been caused by the homeowners themselves. The authors provide a list of some of the most common costly mistakes made by new homeowners, such as disconnecting or not using bathroom and laundry vent fans, or incorrectly installing a security alarm/penetrating windows and walls.
“The Home Book: A Complete Guide to Homeowner and Homebuilder Responsibilities” is published by The Building Standards Institute (2014).
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