Determining When to Have a Renovation Inspection Performed

Minor projects such as painting or replacing a few broken gutters can be treated as DIY projects, and will usually not require any form of inspection to be done afterwards. However, if you have decided to have renovation projects performed on your home, such as remodelling a basement or adding one or more rooms to the original structure, you will need to ensure that all work being done conforms to current Australian Standards as well as building regulations and codes.

Getting the Inspections Performed

In most cases, a reputable renovation or remodelling contractor will deal with the responsibility of ensuring the required permits are obtained before starting with any projects on your property. However, they may not always be the ones who get the appropriate inspectors to come out and view the end results of their projects.

Differences between Pre-purchase Inspections and Renovation Inspections

Property inspections that are carried out after any renovation work has been performed are direct pass or fail instances – unlike purchase inspections where the basic condition of a property is determined. The outcome of a pre-purchase inspection may alter negotiations between property buyers and sellers, but will not normally affect the home owner’s ability to live in the property unless severe code violations have been detected. However, a home that does not pass inspection after renovation or extensive remodelling projects have been carried out could be one in which the occupants may need to vacate the house until such time as all faults pertaining to the work done have been addressed and 100% resolved.

Although a renovation inspection is required upon completion of work being done, it’s important to remember that these inspections are only carried out to ensure that local building codes have been adhered to. They generally don’t inspect the overall quality of the work that has been done. Provided that all of the required guidelines have been met, building materials used meet required quality standards and the remodelling or alteration work has been carried out according to required minimum standards, the renovation will pass inspection.

When will the renovation Inspection be Performed?

If you are having a large renovation or alteration project performed on your property, it is strongly recommended that you have an inspector come in as each phase of the project is completed. Although this may seem like a tremendous amount of extra hassle and effort, it could potentially save you a lot of heartache along the way and it will enable you to have problems rectified before having over final payment to the contractor. Most large building alteration projects are paid in stages that have been previously agreed upon between the homeowner and the contractor, which is why it is a good idea to have a renovation inspection performed at each stage of the project.

If your property fails inspection, you will need to speak with the contractor directly, as most of them have remedial processes in place that will ensure repairs are carried out at no additional cost. For further information regarding our renovation inspection services, contact our team today.