What type of inspections are required in a property purchase?

When you are buying a property, you should understand that it is always “buyer beware”, which means that it is up to you to research into the property to satisfy yourself that the property is the right one for you. In other words, “what you see is what you get” or in the case of property purchase, “you get what you also cannot see” so it is important that you engage experts to make the necessary discoveries for you on top of what you can do for yourself.

Start with a thorough walk-through inspection

You would usually have done this as a part of your open house inspections, but you may not have done a very thorough job when you first walked through the house. Don’t worry, you can always ask for multiple walk-through inspections before you sign the contract. Depending on how desperate the seller is to sell the property, the real estate agent will usually do what they can for you. If you are serious about putting down an offer and signing right after, make sure that you go through the property thoroughly and take notes / photos of the condition of the property.

You should cast your eyes over everything, open every door, turn on every fixed appliance, test the hot water system, turn on the heater / air-conditioner and do not rely only on the seller real estate agents’ words. If there is a tenant or the seller is living at the property, understandably you may feel reluctant to go through the house thoroughly, but remember that if you do not then you may be doing yourself a disservice if there ever comes a time when you have to dispute the condition of the property.

Then order a building and pest inspection

Even the most thorough inspection by you may not be enough to protect you if you don’t know what you’re looking for. Hence, it is important to engage an expert to inspect the building for the structural integrity and any future risks that may develop. The best of the building and pest inspectors will be able to undertake a risk assessment for you and make recommendations on what needs to be done to ward the property against future risks or at least delay the inevitable. After all, you can’t really do much about fair wear and tear of an existing dwelling, you can only do what you can to maintain it.

You also have to understand that depending on the condition that you’ve written into the contract, you may not be able to walk away just because there is a problem disclosed in the building and pest inspection report after you have signed the contract. If the contract is subject to a report, it will only protect you if there is a major structural defect or major pest infestation. That is, if the problem disclosed is not serious enough at the time, you may still have to purchase the property.

Lastly, make sure you always undertake a pre-settlement inspection

As a buyer, you will have the right to a pre-settlement inspection. The purpose of this inspection is to allow you to do a final check of the condition of the property prior to handing over your money on settlement. You can generally choose to do this at any time over the 7 days leading up to settlement (for Victorian purchases). If you discover that the condition of the property has changed or deteriorated more than what would be considered to be fair wear and tear, then you may be entitled to require the seller to rectify the issue prior to settlement. You will have to have proof of the condition of the property prior to contract though.

This is where most buyers trip up. They call their conveyancer to let them know that the hot water system wasn’t working the day before settlement, but then can provide no proof that the hot water system was in fact working prior to contract. That’s why it is always very important to go through the property with a notepad and a checklist prior to signing.

You should also contact the real estate agent to make a booking to do your pre-settlement inspection early and ask that the seller do not disconnect the power prior to your inspection. There has been circumstances in the past when appliances can’t be checked because the power was off at the time. In such circumstances, it may be easier for you to ask that the power remain or to ask to be allowed to connect electricity to the property prior to settlement for the purpose of inspection.