Worried about wall cracks...?

Question

I have noticed cracks in the upstairs walls a (most of them), and in the stairwell. These cracks are only at places where the ceiling meets the wall, or walls meet walls - nothing diagonal or random . It does not seem that there are cracks on our first level - but there is one in the stairwell. The one above the bed in my room definitely lets in a cold draft... Should I be concerned? Our house is about 3-4 years old, we bought it just a couple of months ago, and stupidly did not have a home inspection done. We live about 4 blocks from a smallish river, and the houses in our neighborhood get flooded basements when we have rain (we don't have a basement). Could the cracks be from bad drywall work, settling because of the damp area, or should I be much more worried than I am? Basically, do you think that it is mainly cosmetic, or do we have structural integrity problems?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Hi I am a certified home inspector. From what you tell in your letter it sounds like the house is shifting. It may be from the moisture in your area causing the studs in the walls to swell and contract when they dry out. That would over a period of time cause those cracks in those areas.

Answer 2

i take then that you would have Roof trusses in Attic. these have a tendency to lift and sag with the weather and cracks will happen on the interior walls. Ceiling backers althow not mandatory should be installed on top of walls to stop drywall from lifting with the trusses creating cracks in the corners between wall and ceiling. Install backers and re-tape corners with compound 90 first to fill cracks and then drywall mud and tape

Answer 3

You should have a professional look at the cracks. It sounds like what's happening is not a good thing.