Affiliated Professional Services is currently working on multiple single family homes locally that were designed and built to the wrong wind design category. Additionally, many of these homes were designed and built with inadequate stud strength at the exterior walls for application of stucco cladding finishes.
We are typically called out to investigate complaints of excessive stucco cracking and water intrusion, especially at windows and doors. We often find defective window installation and or stucco installation, but we also find improper design for wind resistance.
Remember in times past homes were built in urban areas and with eight foot high ceilings. Now, the popularity in single family homes is moving to the outskirts and building suburban areas of homes. Wide expanses of open land around homes makes them more susceptible to wind forces. Higher ceiling, which are in vogue, but still framed with 2×4 studs are more prone to flex with these wind forces.
Add in lack of skilled tradesmen during the building boom and it could be a recipe for a multitude of problems. If you have excessive stucco cracking and or water intrusion you should have your home examined by an expert.
PROFILE: WILLIAM C. THOMAS
William C. Thomas, president of Affiliated Professional Services, Inc., is a highly esteemed and recognized construction expert witness. He is a licensed real estate broker, certified real estate appraiser, licensed general contractor, licensed swimming pool contractor, licensed stucco contractor, and licensed roofing contractor in California.
Mr. Thomas and his associates
have extensive experience in construction defect evaluations,
engineering evaluations, building code evaluations, architecture
evaluations, insurance evaluations, real estate standard of
care, disclosure duties of sellers of real estate in California,
and real estate appraisals and evaluations.
With licenses in the following
areas of expertise; building contractor, professional engineer,
certified building official, architect, real estate broker, real
estate appraiser and independent insurance adjuster.
Specializing in litigation
support, our experts have been qualified and testified in the
Superior Courts through California including the Counties of
Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer, Los Angeles, Orange, Nevada, San
Francisco, Marin, Alameda, Stanislaus and Lake.
Deposition testimony has been given in all these counties, and
more. In both individual areas of expertise or overlapping areas
of expertise; APS professional experts have testified in all
professional licensed areas.
INSURANCE POLICY APPRAISALS
All first party insurance policies include a “Policy Appraisal”
clause, which is an arbitration clause to settle disputes
between the insurance company and the insured as to the value of
a claimed loss should there be a disagreement. Mr. Thomas has
acted as an arbitrator in hundreds of these disputes appointed
either by the disputing parties or selected by their appraisers
as the umpire or neutral arbitrator. Typically, Mr. Thomas is
selected as the neutral arbitrator due to years of experience in
both the subject matter and in the legal process itself.
EXPERT WITNESS
Mr. Thomas has testified in multiple counties throughout
California as an expert witness in all areas of expertise and
licensing including, but not limited to, the Counties of
Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer, Los Angeles, Orange, Lake,
Stanislaus, San Francisco, Marin and Alameda. Court testimony
has been given in approximately 100 cases and deposition in
approximately 700. Mr. Thomas also acted as lead expert in Las
Vegas in the largest construction defect case in Nevada history,
over $100,000.00 involving 1,250 homes.
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Water intrusion is one of our specialties, as it is a leading indicator of construction defects. Many of our cases begin with water intrusion and mold and end up with multiple defects. In addition to identification of construction defects cause and effect, we prepare detailed reports including identification, remedies and cost of repair.
We inspect dwellings in relation to duties to disclose material facts in real estate cases, in which we identify the cost to repair defects and analyze and opine on sellers’ duties to disclose material facts and/or agents’ duties to disclose and appropriate actions as fiduciaries.
