What’s involved in a building and pest inspection?
A building and pest inspection is an important process that helps to identify potential issues in a property, either prior to purchase or sale. It is a thorough visual inspection of a property to assess its current condition. It looks for any signs of major or minor building defects and any evidence of timber activity or damage.
What is a building and pest inspection?
A building and pest inspection is actually two inspections combined into one: a building inspection and a timber pest inspection.
The building inspection identifies any major or minor building defects, safety hazards and other issues that may affect the liveability of the property. Whereas, the timber pest inspection looks for any evidence of termite activity or damage. It also assesses the property's current termite management system and any conducive conditions to a future infestation.
Why is it important?
For home buyers, a pre-purchase building and pest inspection are important because:
- It assesses the property and its current condition, which helps you to make an informed decision
- It allows you to plan in advance for repairs and maintenance
- It gives you more bargaining power during negotiations if the price needs to be lowered to allow for repairs
- It gives you peace of mind knowing the house is in reasonable condition prior to settlement
A pre-sale building and pest inspection is also a great idea for sellers because:
- It gives you an opportunity to fix any problems before potential buyers view the property and hire their own inspectors
- It will uncover any hidden issues that may have gone unnoticed
- It will help you set a realistic selling price and close the sale faster
- It creates a strong first impression and gives you peace of mind during negotiations
A building and pest inspection is more comprehensive than if you completed an inspection of the property on your own. As the building inspector knows what to look for and will give you a complete snapshot of the property’s current condition.
What's involved in a building and pest inspection?
A building and pest inspection is very thorough and involves checking several different aspects of the property. It involves checking all accessible areas within 30 meters of the house including:
- The interior
- Evaluating the interior condition of the property, looking for any issues with walls, ceilings, floors, and other elements
- The exterior
- Assessing the property's exterior, looking for any signs of damage or wear, such as cracked masonry/brickwork or leaning fences
- Garage/carport
- Checking the garage/carport for any building defects or signs of termite activity or damage
- The roof and gutters
- If accessible and safe, the inspector will examine the roof for damage, leaks, or signs of wear and tear
- The roof void
- Examining the roof void to check for termite damage, poor insulation and other defects
- The subfloor
- Evaluating the subfloor for areas of high moisture, cracked/poor foundation stumps and termite entry
- Using a thermal imaging camera and moisture meter
- These tools help our inspectors to help detect anomalies that may not be apparent to the human eye such as abnormal hot/cold patterns
Each inspection is completed in accordance with Australian Standards and Queensland Building and Construction Commission guidelines. This means the roof, roof void and subfloor can only be checked if it's safe to do so.
Building and Pest Report
Once the inspection is complete, the inspector will provide a detailed report that outlines any issues found during the inspection. It also includes any recommendations for trades or specialists to conduct repairs if needed. At Local Inspections, our reports are easy to read and include coloured photos of defects. This helps the reader understand exactly what the inspector is referring to, where its located and how bad the damage is. We also send reports within 24 hours of the inspection taking place.
Have peace of mind with Local Inspections
With all our building and pest inspectors having over 30 years of experience, you can trust that you're getting a quality building and pest inspection.