Is this normal?

[Enlighten]

We bought a new house in 2007, the house is currently two years old. We have noticed cracks appearing all over the place and are wondering whether this is normal. I know a house settles but should there be this many cracks?. I have attached a few pics, some show the cracks down in the basement, the others are walls throughout the whole house.Thanks in advance for any advice.

[joed]

Drywall cracks looks like a truss uplift issue.
This file has some very good info on truss uplift.

http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/reports/rr-0107-drywall-wood-and-truss-uplift

The last three look like cracked basement floor? Not entirely unusual.

[Fischer]

A couple of problems. Looks like there wasn't enough joint compound under the tape in a few spots. Could be that the framing was wet and not thourghly dried out before hanging the rock. Crack above door looks like they didn't span the opening with a full piece of sheetrock (bad practice)Concrete cracks are typical. Truss uplift could explain cracks in ceiling joint but not horizontal wall cracks.

Crappy tapers and a general who was in a hurry could also explain

[A.n.d.r.e.w]

The issues you are dealing with are unfortunately very common. Although they are not serious issues and repairing the drywall is fairly simple. The reason you are having all the cracks in the drywall is due to the warm and cold weather which causes the house to expand and contract. The contractor that mudded the drywall used poor methods. First the compound in the corners is to thin and they should have used Dura bond 90 or 45 for the first coat of compound. This is an extremely hard product and it prevents cracks from happening. With the one crack on the ceiling, the previous comment is correct about the rafter or trusses lifting. This happens with all houses in the cold weather from the wood shrinking in the attic What they could have done is not put the screws so close to the corner on the ceiling and use Dura bond.

To repair these cracks lightly scratch or sand the loose compound from the cracked areas being careful not to rip the tape behind and then apply another coat of compound. I would use Dura bond 90. But be carful this dries fast and as hard as a rock not easy to sand after. Keep the coats thin just filling the holes. (using a corner trawl makes it easer to apply) You can use normal compound but it will probably happen again.

As far as the cracks in the concrete, it is from you house settling. One of two common reasons. The soil around the house is soft (sandy) or the screening (stone) was packed poorly before pouring the concrete. But this is not a big deal and is very common. Just keep an eye on any leaking from the wall that can be come a serious issue.