Thread: Inspector found cracking in tile along bathroom floor - what is typical recourse?

Hi everyone,

I'll get right to it. I had a home inspection yesterday for a place that I just went into contract on last week. During the inspection we found a thin but noticeable crack trailing from the bathroom door to the bathtub.

I'm not very familiar with the home buying process so I wanted some guidance on what is done typically and what YOU would do as well: Is this something that is typically brought up in negotiations following the inspection? Does the seller usually pay for this or include a credit that approximates the amount of replacement? Should I just eat the cost myself?

Thanks!

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I would have to say here in my location the inspector only calls out what he sees. We are not to bring up cost of repairs or even really determine why something has happened. We recommend that you consult a licensed contractor in that field. If the tile is cracking there is movement. You can consult a tile contractor but since in my opinion this is more likely from undersized framing or a subfloor issue you could contact a framing contractor. Either way the agent your working with should be able to give you guidance in this area. IF they can't their broken most likely can.

anyone can sell anything as long as there's a buyer and no one is or can force anyone to purchase that i'm aware of, unless there are terms in your contract that you didn't read/understand before signing...ymmv

this verbiage is copied from TREC promulgated form and may not apply to your inspection contract, purchase contract, region or state

ITEMS IDENTIFIED IN THE REPORT DO NOT OBLIGATE ANY PARTY TO MAKE REPAIRS OR TAKE OTHER ACTIONS, NOR IS THE PURCHASER REQUIRED TO REQUEST THAT THE SELLER TAKE ANY ACTION.
When a deficiency is reported, it is the client’s responsibility to obtain further evaluations and/or cost estimates from qualified service professionals. Any such follow-up should take place prior to the expiration of any time limitations such as option periods. Evaluations by qualified tradesmen may lead to the discovery of additional deficiencies which may involve additional repair costs.
Failure to address deficiencies or comments noted in this report may lead to further damage of the structure or systems and add to the original repair costs. The inspector is not required to provide follow-up services to verify that proper repairs have been made.

Tiles and grout crack because the subfloor is soft, too bouncy, wet, joist spacing too far apart, joists undersized... in other words the underlying structure is not adequate.

If the tile is over unfinished basement or crawl, easy enough to shore it up so the crack will not get worse assuming it is not a water problem.

If the bath is over finished areas, the lower ceiling can be removed and the structure shored up and drywall patched.

If it is a water problem, fix the leaking toilet, replace the subfloor and tile work.

Without being there, it is all a big guess. Who pays for it is entirely a negoiating point between the buyer and seller. If you just gotta have the house and the price is right, you fix. If you are willing to walk away, the seller may be willing to ante up.

I think Bruce covered it pretty darn well. Not much more can be said on the subject.

Daniel,

Ask your inspector if he thinks it's cosmetic or an indication of something more substantial. Also, how does this condition compare with any other issues brought up in the inspection? It's more a matter of perspective. If you're planning to redo the bathroom down the road then you may just want to live with it for now. Also, if you load the seller up with a long list of minor things they may end up telling you to stick it in your ear and then sell to someone else. If you're working with a GOOD R.E. agent and attorney they may be able to guide you.

You can ask for anything you want, whether the Seller agrees or not is another question.
As someone else mentioned, it's movement. Why is the floor moving? is once again another question.
Is there a floor register in the bathroom? If so, did the inspector pull the register and see how the tile is adhered? If mortar on plywood, it will just keep cracking until it starts to pop off.
Did a house not long ago. 2 bathrooms with very nice new tile floors. Tile already coming loose. Mortar on plywood. When will people stop believing BS advertising?

If the only thing that came up on an entire HI report is a cracked tile I think you should buy the house quickly and consider yourself lucky.

Most sellers typically put throw rugs over cracks and floor damage and hope the inspector will miss it.

Seriously, in the Chicago area the house likely has a basement, right?
If so, it should be pretty easy to determine any issue that could lead to cracked tiles.

Was the crack actually in the tile or in the grout line?

Some tiles are fairly cheap and crack very easily with any movement.

Do you have any photos?

Originally Posted by imported_John Smith

Seriously, in the Chicago area the house likely has a basement, right?

We also have our share of crawl spaces which are attractive to the John Wayne Gacy crowd.

Cracked tile is not "cosmetic" as someone said above. There is a reason for it to have cracked.

I don't know about your sales contract, or sales contracts in other states and areas, but when I was inspecting in South Florida the seller GUARANTEED that all was well and fine and dandy other than what was disclosed, and that there was a limit the seller would pay for before being allowed to walk away from the deal.

Once the limit was crossed, the buyer could pay for the repairs (i.e., "take responsibility" for the repairs, whether they did the repairs or not was up to the buyer).

If neither the seller nor the buyer agreed to cover the covered repairs (and most items were covered), then the deal could be canceled and the buyer and seller would go their own way (usually with great dis-satisfaction and grumbling as they should each have just kicked in some and completed the deal - but the choice was theirs to make).

Originally Posted by Daniel Asamoto

Hi everyone,

I'll get right to it. I had a home inspection yesterday for a place that I just went into contract on last week. During the inspection we found a thin but noticeable crack trailing from the bathroom door to the bathtub.

I'm not very familiar with the home buying process so I wanted some guidance on what is done typically and what YOU would do as well: Is this something that is typically brought up in negotiations following the inspection? Does the seller usually pay for this or include a credit that approximates the amount of replacement? Should I just eat the cost myself?

Thanks!

You did not say how big the tiles are but the bigger the tile the more easily they crack. From personal experience I know that if you do not get a good coat of mortar on the back of a 12x12 tile it will crack where a 8x8 would not have. My point is that the problem may be a bad tile job and not a structural issue.

I reread the message and dwelled on it some more.

You had a home inspection, did the inspector give any reasonable scenario for the crack, or throw in the standard disclaimer to have it evaluated by a licensed professional engineer.

What I would do, try to get them to fix it, if not, decide if its worth your time/money. If its a fairly small bathroom, tile replacement costs probably arent that great in the grand scheme of things. If its foundation / framing issues - costs could conceivably be astronomical (Watch the overly dramatic Holmes inspection - they would take the house down to the studs on something like that).

Do you have a wife? Will she constantly fixate and nag over it?

The seller will pay if they are trying to unload the house and have some fat built into the selling price. If they dont pay, you have to decide if you can live with it or if the cost to repair is worth it. No easy answer here.

Some realtors will fight hard for you and have a good track record, others will roll over and go back to their donut eating.

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

Cracked tile is not "cosmetic" as someone said above. There is a reason for it to have cracked.

Cracked tile is not "cosmetic" in the sense above, but real-world a purchaser often has to make the choice to deal with it as a "cosmetic" problem (live with the crack, and perhaps reset tiles as they lose adhesion to the substrate, at least until the deterioration reaches the point where repairs are impractical) or to undertaken correction of the underlying cause, which real-world generally means that you're going to be pulling up the tile and replacing it after repairs are made.

Especially in the case of cracked tiles which are not missing much grout and are still adequately adhere to the substrate, the sellers may have been living with them for many years, and I know that buyers often elect to do the same, and negotiate price reductions based on problems in need of more immediate attention.