New build warranty headache advice

[Cornelius Brady]

BP family, 

I wanted to get a different set of eyes on this. We purchased a new build in 2020 as our primary residence. We moved out in late July of this year because of the military, and planned on using the home as a long term rental. My wife and I left on a 10 day vacation in late July prior to moving and when we came back, what we thought was just a normal drywall crack from foundation settling expanded into a hole that opened up in the ceiling to the point where we could see the insultation in the attic. I contacted the builder since the home is still under warranty, and they sent out a foundation surveyor yesterday and his report stated that we have a foundation issue due to insufficient drainage of the property. He noted in his email that our sprinkler system was set to water 6x/wk for 33 minutes each day, and that that was the primary cause of the foundation sinking. Someone from the warranty department was out there with him yesterday and she asked me about that, but a few minutes later told me she had read it wrong and that the sprinklers were set to water once a week for 33 minutes, which is the setting I've had it on since we occupied the home in November 2020. The surveyor recommended a follow on survey in 120 days to more accurately diagnose the issue prior to making any repairs, which means I'm unable to rent this property for at least another four months. That means I'm paying two mortgages for that time. 

What would you do if you were in my situation?

Thanks for the help, 

-Neil  

[Sergey A. Petrov]

This is probably where I'd engage an attorney. Builder warranties need to be navigated around very carefully. The form and the timing of written notices is important. You also want to make sure the builder's insurance is aware in case the builder goes under or dissolves the LLC that was used for the development and construction purposes or just flat waits for some timeline to expire and then tell you there is no longer any warranty