NEW JERSEY HOME INSPECTOR. CERTIFIED, LICENSED, HOME INSPECTOR IN NJ

Exterior Insulation and Finish System (EIFS)

EIFS is also called synthetic stucco.  Home inspectors in most of the US cringe when they see it on a home because they know there is likely to be latent damage that can be very expensive to fix below the great looking cement stucco like finish with decorative elements the buyer fell in love with etched in.

Relocation companies and home owner's insurance companies are not fans of the material either.  Frequantly relocation companies will not deal with EIFS home and home owner's insurance companies will not write coverage on these type homes.

If you must buy an EIFS home make sure you have invasive moisture testing performed.  I have yet to hear about an EIFS home where a invasive moisture test showed no problems or one where an installation expert found no problems.

EIFS costs builder 3 Million Dollars

I have seen homes with EIFS that had MAJOR damage when they were only a few years old.  I have also seen EIFS that was patched up and painted, it looked great on the outside, however the neighbors home built at about the same time appeared to have major defects.  Perhaps the neighbors EIFS crew had a bad day, Perhaps the fresh paint was covering tens of thousands of dollars worth of latent damages.