Investigation of factors contributing to building code violations in residential construction

A research project was conducted aimed to investigate and understand the factors that contribute to residential code violations and to develop recommendation to improve residential code applications. Our research focus was on residential structural building code violations. Data was collected from an opinion survey from 195 industry related stakeholders (design professional, builders, and building officials). Our research findings suggest that the contributing factors for code violations in residential construction fall into four main categories: 1) limited education and training; 2) unclear roles and responsibilities; 3) limited resources; 4) legal and regulatory. We concluded that lack of education and or training is a major contributing factor and we found a correlation between educations and the understanding of the building code. In addition, we gained insight in roles and responsibilities, we learned that the building culture lacks from a clear understanding of roles and accountability among the key stakeholders. Limited resource can always be an issue in any industry. Competitive pricing usually forces builders to take shortcuts, use inadequate materials, hire lowest bidder sacrificing quality. Finally, the industry needs an overhaul on its legal and regulatory system. Today, we have very little accountability over tracking violations and violators.