Corner cracking on wall

[Steven Bays]

Has anyone else experienced this in the Midwest with the heavy winter. Just about every window has a crack coming from the corner on the wall. Anyone dealt with this? I think the previous owner did some bandaids before. Any help is appreciated.

[Jim Viens]

Cracks like that are typically a sign of foundation settling. Here in Kansas City it's actually been really dry (in spite of the winter snows) so a lot of the problems are from the soil drying out and shrinking from the foundation, removing the support from the sides and bottom. Too-wet weather can cause problems too as the soil swells and pushes in on the foundation and up from the bottom. I'd examine the cracks really closely. Probe just inside the crack with a piece of wire and see if it's any wider in the middle of the sheetrock. That could indicate it's a bigger problem that's been patched over. If the crack is bigger than about 1/2" or if doors are sticking I'd have the foundation checked.