A concrete stoop has settled and now tilts back toward the front door. What is the concern?

Exterior flatwork is supposed to shed water away from the building, and a stoop that has settled toward the door reverses that. Every rainfall now collects on the slab and drains against the threshold, the sill and the framing behind it — the one location where the wall assembly has the least tolerance for standing water. The damage accumulates out of sight: sill plate and rim joist decay, threshold rot, and in freezing climates ice forming exactly where the door needs clearance. What the inspector can report is the negative slope and the water it directs at the entry, which is observable. What the inspector cannot determine visually is why the stoop settled, since the footing is buried, so the report describes the condition and its consequence rather than diagnosing the cause.

The reversed slope delivers every rainfall against the door and the sill beneath it, which is where water does the most damage to concealed framing. That drainage consequence is the reportable concern and is visible from the surface.

Grade and flatwork should slope away from the structure so surface water is carried off rather than held against the building. Reverse slope at entries directs water to thresholds and sills, and the resulting decay in rim joists and sill plates is concealed until it is advanced.

Water Goes Where the Concrete Points. A stoop tilted at the door is a funnel aimed at the sill. Report the aim, not the buried footing.

Distinguish what you observed from what you inferred. Slope is observed; footing failure is inferred and beyond a visual inspection.

• •Declaring a buried footing failed based on surface settlement
• •Reporting door operation instead of the water being directed at the sill
• •Claiming the stoop will damage the house foundation