“Upscale builder grade” is an oxymoron. You have a big builder grade house. And the work to go with it.

When I brought it up to the builder, they have stated that the homes with this square footage (3650 sqft) do not have even walls and the tile will come out crooked as a result.

WHATTT????? That's BS!

They state that in their larger construction homes (10k sq ft+) they use lvl studs that come out perfectly straight.

It shouldn't matter what size the home. Walls should be straight even in cheap houses.

“You have a big builder grade house. And the work to go with it.”

Is there anything outside of $10M+ houses you don’t dismiss as builder grade junk?

To the OP: The mosaic tile workmanship is unacceptable. Regardless of price point (not that yours is a cheap house as some on this forum seem to think).

I am with Mark - "checks this size are often a little messed up".

I agree on the mosaics being a problem.

You have to determine where and when to pick your battles on this one. If the underlying waterproofing is good - have them fix the most dreadful looking. I get concerned that the repairs will impact the water proofing - just because these folks don't do "backwards" builds....

I also agree that there are certain basics that any consumer should expect. Straight walls are one of them.

Is there anything outside of $10M+ houses you don’t dismiss as builder grade junk?

In fairness, it's not the total cost of the build that determines quality, it's what you get for your money. Generally, a true custom build with excellent workmanship costs more per squarefoot than a "luxury" tract home. You can throw $1M at an enormous McMansion and still have junk. Huge, well-appointed junk, but still junk. Not that this necessarily applies to the OP.

It shouldn't matter what size the home. Walls should be straight even in cheap houses.

Say rather, walls in even a well-built home on a modest budget should be straight. But walk into a CHEAP house with a level and be prepared to cackle maniacally.

I'm with janni - if this is a production builder, be very cautious about "making them redo things". Especially if you won't be there to see how well they replace waterproofing, etc. Generally, if they have a burning need to get their crews to the NEXT house... they're not going to do a careful job about replacing something that isn't up to snuff. The second time may well be worse - where you can't spot it.

@holly stockley

The waterproofing is my biggest concern as well.

Do you have any pics of what it looked like before the tiles went up?

My house build is about $400,000 less than yours (but also about half the size) and they are in this week fixing some backsplash tiles and a couple shower tiles that are far less offensive than that mosaic of yours because they were not satisfactory to me. That mosaic is awful.

My husband and I since we now live in the home can be on site and watch and so far it looks like they are doing a great job (I also insisted they send in a different trade to fix the tile). And this is a (modified) production home - or tract home as called in US. Just because it is not full custom does not mean that I should accept poor workmanship. It just means I should not be expecting the highest of craftsmen details, and that is okay as I am not. But I do expect more than “eh, I messed that one up but let’s see if they complain”. The reality is many people don’t make an issue of it (in my line of work I work with clients buying new builds and many just won’t, even in a expensive custom home) so the odds are on their side.

Even in new houses there can be some walls that are not “perfectly straight” - there are many layers from studs to drywall and settling starts right away - but that is not an excuse for poor workmanship. There are tolerances, and you may need to pick your battles, but I would not be happy with that mosaic, and it looks like they could maybe clean up the silicone or corners in a couple other areas too.

If your builder can’t provide tile work within reasonable tolerances and that looks pleasing, then they should either find another tiler, not offer that tile as an option at all, or warn clients the straight mosaic they chose will look like yours when tiled in.

Ask your builder if they would accept this in their own home. If he says yes, ask for a house tour ;)

I would love to hear the opinion of a pro tile contractor.

If this is a production (tract) builder or your are purchasing the home at completion, of course you have the choice to accept and close or not. I would take another walk through their models and look closely at the tile work in their models and use that as a minimum standard of workmanship they should live up to as that is the standard they are representing.

It looks bad, especially the mosaic tiles. DH and I installed all the tile in our new build and we didn't have a problem with crooked walls. Know why? Because my DH spent a few hours straightening all the studs and putting in shims where needed before drywall. He concentrated especially where tile was going to go because we have tiled over crooked walls on a previous house and it was a nightmare.

Back in the day, straightening studs was a normal thing to do after everything was framed. Really, it only takes a few hours and saves you so much time and headaches when installing the finishes. Too bad your contractor didn't have the know-all and experience to do that.

Despite what you're paying, is this a full custom build?

Cost or size of build bears no relation to quality. A tile job is only as good as the tiler and their surface preparation regardless of initial state; finding the best in the area is not hard however getting your build on their schedule is, and they can be a little more expensive. These choices exist only if you are building a complete custom home and are also responsible for approving each sub before they commence work and are able to track their quaility/workmanship during their prep and subsequent work and/or there are clear quality statements in the contract, favoring the home owner (most builders will not allow that). Having said that, very few owners have complete knowledge of techniques (in this case tile work) or the ability to tell good from bad right at the onset; most only see the result and feel lucky if it is good.

Just to put it in context, I fired our builders trim guy (through the builder) on the very first day of his job; not to my standards or my DW who went absolutely spare when she found a quality issue with first two interior doors install. The builder is now sending his best and we are happy. In 18 months of build I've never had to fire anyone.