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One of the reasons that I bought my current house is that the previous (also original) homeowners seemed to contract everything out and pay top dollar for the best long-term fix.

I have duel sump-pumps with a battery backup. There is a solar fan in the attic to keep the heat down. Over the bedroom, where insulation would tend to settle because of the sloped ceiling, they had foam insulation put in. All of my shower valves are the kind with an internal shutoff so that you can change the seals without shutting off water to the whole house. The HVAC system is an absolute top of the line model.

Most of the problems I've dealt with are due to the original builder cutting corners...