Construction Defect Claims

An owner's or association's claim against a builder, developer, contractor or design professional for defects in how a home or building was designed or built.

Looking for a lawyer rather than a definition? Skip to the state-by-state list of Construction Defects law firms.

What it means

A construction defect is a flaw in the design, materials or workmanship of a building that causes damage or makes it fall short of what was promised or what the building code required: water intrusion through roofs, windows and stucco, foundation cracking and settlement, failing plumbing or electrical systems, mold from trapped moisture, and structural elements that do not meet code. The claims available depend on who is suing and what was promised. A buyer of a new home usually has express warranties in the purchase contract and, in most states, an implied warranty that the home was built in a workmanlike manner and is fit to live in (see warranty of habitability). Owners can also sue for breach of contract, for negligence, and in some states for violation of consumer protection statutes; architects and engineers can be liable for negligent design.

Several rules shape these cases. The economic loss rule in many states bars a negligence claim for a defect that has damaged only the building itself, leaving the owner to contract and warranty claims, though states differ sharply on this. Construction claims face both an ordinary limitation period, which generally runs from discovery of the defect, and a statute of repose that runs from substantial completion of the project and cuts off claims after a fixed number of years whether or not the defect was discoverable. Many states also have right-to-repair or notice-and-opportunity-to-cure laws that require an owner to give the builder written notice and a chance to inspect and fix before filing suit; skipping the notice can get a case dismissed or stayed. In a condominium or planned community the association usually has standing to sue over defects in the common elements on behalf of all owners.

The money in a construction case usually comes from the contractors' commercial general liability insurance, and whether a defect is a covered "occurrence" has been litigated state by state. Subcontractors who did the defective work are typically brought in by the general contractor, and a contractor who has not been paid may respond with a mechanics lien. Expert evidence is essential: a building envelope consultant or engineer to identify each defect and its cause, and a cost estimator for the repair scope, because damages are generally the reasonable cost of repair or, where repair is unreasonable, the loss in value.

Where this comes from

When people hire a lawyer for this

Document the defects with dated photographs and keep every contract, warranty, change order and communication with the builder. Before you send a demand or hire a contractor to tear anything out, talk to a construction lawyer, because many states require a formal pre-suit notice and because repairing the evidence before the builder and its insurer have inspected it can hurt the claim. Ask about the statute of repose for your project right away. Construction defect lawyers may work hourly, on a contingency fee for large association cases, or a mix; an association should check its governing documents and state law on the vote needed to sue.

Worried about the cost? A lawyer can be hired for one part of a case only (limited-scope representation), may be paid from what a claim recovers (contingency fee), or may be free through a pro bono program or legal aid; a court can also waive its own filing fees.

Find Construction Defects law firms in your state

Choose your state to see Construction Defects law firms in the city where we list the most; your city may be under “other cities”, A to Z. A state marked “Real Estate” has no Construction Defects listing yet and opens the broader page.

• Alabama (Birmingham)
  +1 other city

  • Montgomery
• Alaska (Anchorage)
• Arizona (Chandler)
  +6 other cities

  • Gilbert
  • Glendale
  • Mesa
  • Phoenix
  • Scottsdale
  • Tucson
• Arkansas (Little Rock)
• California (Anaheim)
  +19 other cities

  • Bakersfield
  • Chula Vista
  • Fremont
  • Fresno
  • Irvine
  • Long Beach
  • Modesto
  • Oakland
  • Sacramento
  • San Jose
  • Santa Ana
  • Stockton
  • and 7 more with fewer listed firms
• Colorado (Aurora)
  +2 other cities

  • Colorado Springs
  • Denver
• Connecticut (Bridgeport)
• Delaware (Wilmington)
• District of Columbia (Washington)
• Florida (Hialeah)
  +5 other cities

  • Jacksonville
  • Miami
  • Orlando
  • St Petersburg
  • Tampa
• Georgia (Atlanta)
• Hawaii (Honolulu)
• Idaho (Boise)
• Illinois (Chicago)
• Indiana (Fort Wayne)
  +1 other city

  • Indianapolis
• Iowa (Des Moines)
• Kansas (Kansas City, Real Estate)
  +1 other city

  • Wichita
• Kentucky (Lexington)
  +1 other city

  • Louisville
• Louisiana (Baton Rouge)
  +2 other cities

  • New Orleans
  • Shreveport
• Maine (Portland)
• Maryland (Baltimore)
• Massachusetts (Boston)
• Michigan (Detroit)
• Minnesota (Minneapolis)
  +1 other city

  • Saint Paul
• Mississippi (Jackson)
• Missouri (Kansas City)
  +1 other city

  • St. Louis
• Montana (Billings)
• Nebraska (Lincoln)
  +1 other city

  • Omaha
• Nevada (Henderson)
  +3 other cities

  • Las Vegas
  • North Las Vegas
  • Reno
• New Hampshire (Manchester)
• New Jersey (Jersey City)
  +1 other city

  • Newark
• New Mexico (Albuquerque)
• New York (New York City)
  +2 other cities

  • Buffalo
  • Rochester
• North Carolina (Charlotte)
  +5 other cities

  • Durham
  • Fayetteville
  • Greensboro
  • Raleigh
  • Winston-Salem
• North Dakota (Fargo, Real Estate)
• Ohio (Cincinnati)
  +3 other cities

  • Cleveland
  • Columbus
  • Toledo
• Oklahoma (Oklahoma City)
  +1 other city

  • Tulsa
• Oregon (Portland)
• Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)
  +1 other city

  • Pittsburgh
• Rhode Island (Providence)
• South Carolina (Columbia)
• South Dakota (Sioux Falls)
• Tennessee (Memphis)
  +1 other city

  • Nashville
• Texas (Corpus Christi)
  +12 other cities

  • Arlington
  • Austin
  • Dallas
  • El Paso
  • Fort Worth
  • Garland
  • Houston
  • Irving
  • Laredo
  • Lubbock
  • Plano
  • San Antonio
• Utah (Salt Lake City)
• Vermont (Burlington)
• Virginia (Chesapeake)
  +3 other cities

  • Norfolk
  • Richmond
  • Virginia Beach
• Washington (Seattle)
  +2 other cities

  • Spokane
  • Tacoma
• West Virginia (Charleston)
• Wisconsin (Madison)
  +1 other city

  • Milwaukee
• Wyoming (Cheyenne)

Related terms

Other entries in the same area of law, each written from the same primary sources.

• Adverse PossessionThe doctrine by which a person who occupies land they do not own, openly and continuously for the period the state sets, becomes its owner - the elements, the "color of title" and tax-payment variations, and why it decides fence and driveway disputes far more often than it transfers whole parcels.
• Boundary Line DisputeHow property lines are established, why fences and old surveys so often disagree with the deed, the doctrines that can move a boundary, and how disputes are resolved.
• Breaking a LeaseWhat a tenant owes when leaving before a fixed-term lease ends, the landlord's duty in most states to re-rent, and the situations in which the law lets a tenant end a lease early.
• Deed Types: Warranty, Special Warranty and QuitclaimWhat the different forms of deed promise about the title they convey - the general warranty deed's guarantee against every defect, the special warranty deed's narrower one, and the quitclaim deed's none - and what each is used for.
• EasementA legal right to use someone else's land for a defined purpose, without owning it.
• Eminent Domain (Condemnation and Just Compensation)The government's power to take private property for public use, which the Constitution allows only with just compensation, and the owner's rights when it does.
• Eviction (Unlawful Detainer)The court process a landlord must use to make a tenant leave - and in most states, the only lawful way to do it.
• Foreclosure (Judicial and Non-Judicial)The process by which a mortgage lender takes and sells a home after default - the court-supervised route some states require and the trustee's sale others permit, the federal servicing rules that must be followed first, the loss-mitigation alternatives, and what the borrower can still owe or reclaim after the sale.
• HOA Covenants and Assessment LiensThe recorded restrictions that bind every owner in a planned community or condominium, the association that enforces them, and the assessment lien that lets it foreclose on a home for unpaid dues - what the documents control, how they are amended and enforced, and the limits the states have placed on association power.
• Homeowners Insurance ClaimHow a property loss claim actually works - what the policy covers, the duties it imposes on you, and where claims most often fail.
• Implied Warranty of HabitabilityA landlord's obligation to keep a rented home fit to live in - one the lease usually cannot sign away.
• Land Use and ZoningThe local rules that decide what can be built where, and the variances, special permits, rezonings and appeals an owner uses when the rules stand in the way.
• Loan Modification and Foreclosure AlternativesThe options a homeowner behind on a mortgage can ask the servicer for - forbearance, repayment plans, loan modification, short sale and deed in lieu - and the federal rules on how servicers must handle the request.
• Mechanic's Lien (Construction Lien)The statutory lien a contractor, subcontractor, supplier or laborer may record against a property for unpaid work or materials - the preliminary notices and filing deadlines that make or break it, why an owner who paid the general contractor can still face a subcontractor's lien, and how the lien is enforced or released.
• Private Nuisance (Neighbor Disputes)When a neighbor's noise, smoke, odors, light, water or trees become a legal wrong, how courts weigh the harm, and what remedies are available.
• Purchase Contract ContingenciesThe conditions in a home-purchase agreement that let a buyer walk away with the deposit - inspection, financing, appraisal, sale of the buyer's current home, title - how each is exercised and waived, and what happens to the earnest money when the deal fails.
• Quiet Title ActionThe lawsuit that asks a court to declare who owns a property and to remove a competing claim from the record - used to clear an old mortgage never released, a break in the chain of title, a tax-sale or adverse-possession claim, or a deed that should never have been recorded.
• Security DepositMoney a tenant leaves with a landlord against damage or unpaid rent - held under state rules that usually require an itemized accounting within a fixed period after move-out.
• Seller Disclosure DutiesWhat a seller of a home must tell a buyer about the property - known material defects, water intrusion, structural and system problems, and under federal law lead-based paint - the state disclosure forms, the "as is" sale, and what a buyer can do when a problem was concealed.
• Title Search and Title InsuranceThe examination of public records that establishes who owns a property and what claims stand against it, and the insurance policy that pays if that examination missed something - who is protected by the lender's policy, who by the owner's, and what neither covers.
• Transfer-on-Death DeedA recorded deed that leaves a house to someone at death while changing nothing during life - available in many states, and not all.

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