To use something improperly to the extent that damage or excessive wear becomes apparent. Abuse can be unintentional, occasional or attributed to a seemingly innocent action.

The New Home Buyer Protection Act.

An act which occurs exclusively by the forces of nature, uncontrolled and uninfluenced by human intervention and which is of such a character that it could not have been prevented or escaped from by any amount of foresight or prudence. For example: a snowstorm or tornado.

A person who engages in, arranges for or manages all or substantially all of the construction or reconstruction of a new home, or agrees to do any of those things, and includes a general contractor.

The Saskatchewan Building Code in effect at the date the building permit was issued for the home.

The collection of components that separate conditioned space from unconditioned space, exterior air or the ground, or that separate conditioned spaces intended to be conditioned to temperatures differing by more than 10°C at design conditions.

The Canadian Electrical Code.

The Canadian Standards Association.

Written notice given by an owner to their warranty provider and residential builder that provides reasonable detail about defects that the owner believes are covered by the policy of home warranty insurance.

Damage to the building materials or components of the home resulting from failure of a related or adjacent component.

Areas that are touching.

An agreement between two parties that is enforceable by law.

Serving (primarily) an aesthetic or appearance function.

The development of a network of random cracks or fissures on the surface of concrete, mortar or solid surfaces caused by shrinkage of the surface layer or by hot water expansion and contraction.

Any design, construction or material used in the construction of a new home that is discovered after the commencement of coverage under a home warranty insurance contract and

• is contrary to the building code,
• requires repair or replacement due to the negligence of an owner builder or a residential builder or person for whom the owner builder or residential builder is by law responsible,
• constitutes an unreasonable health or safety risk, or
• has resulted in material damage to the new home.

Defects that result in the failure of the building envelope to perform its intended function.

Includes electrical, gas, plumbing, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems to which the Safety Codes Act applies and any other systems prescribed as delivery and distribution systems. Also includes private sewage disposal systems that serve a single property, are designed to receive not more than 25 cubic meters of sewage each day, and are designed to dispose of sewage either on the property that the system serves or in a holding tank. Appliances and fixtures attached to a delivery and distribution system are excluded from the definition of delivery and distribution system.

One who prepares raw land for construction and then sells serviced lots to a builder.

Wood milled with varying width, thickness and length.

A surface intended and constructed primarily to be used for vehicular access to or from a new home.

All exterior wall coverings, including siding and above-grade masonry (for example, concrete, bricks, or stone) as required and detailed in the relevant sections of the building code under which the building permit was issued; exterior cladding is considered part of the building envelope.

The exposed, relatively thin (usually), cosmetic or protective layer; as opposed to the supporting substrate material.

The Government of Alberta’s Construction Performance Guide for New Home Warranty in Alberta.

A contract of insurance issued by a warranty provider covering defects in the construction of a new home and consequential losses or costs incurred by the owner.

The registered legal owner of the home.

Work which is done regularly to keep a home and its equipment in good condition and working order. New homes require maintenance. Homeowners need to familiarize themselves with mechanical systems, utilities, and routines involved in the maintenance of the home. Damage caused by improper homeowner maintenance is not considered a defect.

An action required of the homeowner.

The amount of water vapour within the air expressed as a percentage of the amount of water the air can hold at one atmosphere pressure and at a given temperature.

Maintenance that is not in keeping with maintenance requirements, recommended procedures, or best practices.

The support system of the home capable of transmitting live and dead loads to the supporting ground as determined from the plans and specifications of the home, and includes only the footings, piles, foundation walls, grade beams, teleposts, load-bearing walls, beams, floor systems and roof trusses.

A home that is constructed as an individual pre-assembled unit intended for delivery to a residential site, or from a number of pre-assembled units that are intended for delivery to and assembly at a residential site.

Guarantee made by the fabricator or assembler of a product regarding the performance, quality, and reliability of that product.

In many entries in this guide, a value has been attached to quantify the magnitude of the defect in an attempt to reduce subjective assessment. The imperial number is the value that should be used in all instances. The metric number (in parenthesis) is an approximation only for the convenience of those who may be more familiar with that measuring system. Tape measures are commonly available in either system but micrometers or Vernier calipers for smaller measurements are usually not found around the home. For the purposes cited in this guide, smaller measurements may be approximated by considering the thickness of a typical business card:

• 1 business card | 0.25 mm
• 2 business cards | 0.5 mm
• 3 business cards | 0.75 mm
• 4 business cards | 1.0 mm

The responsibility of a homeowner to stop or reduce damages affecting the home by acting both responsibly and in a timely manner (especially those involving water or utilities).

A building containing 2 or more dwelling units.

An incorporated city, county, metropolitan authority, town, village, township, district or rural municipality or other incorporated municipal body having corporate status and powers of self- government.

The New Home Buyer Protection Office. (Alberta)

As would be expected through inherent nature.

A building, or a portion of a building, that is newly constructed or that is being constructed and is intended for residential occupancy and in respect of which the purchase period has not expired, and includes:

• a self-contained dwelling unit that is detached, attached to one or more other self-contained dwelling units, or includes a secondary suite,
• common property, common facilities and other assets of a condominium corporation,
• any building or portion of a building that is of a class prescribed as a class of new home to which this Act applies,
• a building that is intended for residential occupancy and that is a reconstruction, and
• a manufactured home,

but does not include a hotel, motel, dormitory, care facility, relocatable work camp, or any building exempted by the regulations from the definition of new home.

Something exhibiting typical, usual, or conventional construction, design or operation.

Normal lighting is light sourced from the sun or by the fixtures as installed by the Builder. The use of additional light sources; flood lights, flash lights and flashes to enhance an irregularity is not considered normal. Normal lighting is not associated with a particular time of day.

Typical or usual viewing conditions, that is:

• Flooring is viewed from a standing position;
• Interior finishes are viewed from 5 feet (1.5 m) at 90° or such other parameter as specified in this guide.
• Exterior finishes are viewed from 20 feet (6 m) or such other parameters as specified in this guide.

Physical deterioration arising from age and normal use.

The change in an object’s surface appearance resulting from natural aging due to normal wear and tear and oxidation.

A plant for the treatment and disposal of sewage, including a septic tank and absorption field, that is not connected to a municipal sewage disposal system and is installed during the construction of a new home.

A painted surface that is uniform in appearance, color, and sheen and is free of foreign material, lumps, skins, runs, sags, misses, strike-through, or insufficient coverage. It is a surface which is free of drips, splatters, spills or overspray which were caused by the contractor’s workforce.

Compliance to meeting the criteria of a “properly painted surface” shall be determined when viewed without magnification at a distance of five feet or more under normal lighting conditions and from a normal viewing position, (no less than a 45 degree angle to the wall surface).

To display a certain condition without repositioning, adjusting, or tuning the senses of the observer; under normal lighting and from a normal viewing position.

To hear a sound clearly in a normal use condition.

To see a detail clearly from a normal lighting and normal viewing position.

A building where, after a change, alteration or repair to the building, at least 75% of the enclosed square footage of the building above the foundation at the completion of the change, alteration or repair is new. A change, addition, alteration or repair to a building’s surfaces, fixtures or decorations is not a reconstruction for the purposes of the NHBPA.

To make right or correct (i.e., resolve a defect) by either repair or replacement.

To recondition, mend or put back in working order. The chosen repair method will bring the variance to within the acceptable performance condition as specified in the guide.

To substitute or put in the place of another with an equivalent item.

An even surface that is free from bumps, projections, foreign material, etc.

An invisible, straight, line between two points on the surface of a wall, ceiling or floor which defines the intended flat surface.

Any defect in materials, labour and design that results in the failure of a load-bearing part of the new home, and any defect that causes structural damage that materially and adversely affects the use of the new home for residential occupancy.

The surface, or medium, that serves as a base for the next layer of finish (protective or cosmetic surface).

A process of establishing and maintaining grades and systems for the control of surface water.

Having similar form, colour, texture or attributes throughout a defined area.

With respect to defects discussed in this guide, the walkway is the builder-constructed surface that serves as the primary pedestrian access to the front of the new home and may include stairs; the walkway may connect the home to the driveway or connect the home to public property.

The test performed to confirm water leaks, both above and below grade.