Stop - Check Your Builder Before You Sign
Ask them this simple question – do they expect you to wear a blindfold when you do your practical completion inspection?
Some residential building firms in Perth are unbelievable – they are essentially asking you to do a practical completion inspection whilst blind folded!
The WA Master Builders Website states that:
“Practical completion is a term that is misunderstood by many home buyers. Generally it means the point where all building work is complete or all but completed, in accordance with the contract, and the house is reasonably fit for occupation.
A building contract usually defines practical completion being when all works are completed, except for any defects or omissions which do not prevent the home from being used for its intended purpose. In other words, if the unfinished items prevent the home from being “lived in” then practical completion could be deemed not to have occurred.”
So we have a great definition. But, what if there is a major defect in the roof frame. That could make the property structurally unsound and hence far from appropriate to live in but also potentially uninsurable. Does it happen? Every month!
So why is it that at least two big name major building companies in Perth will not allow their clients and or their Building Inspectors access to the roof space to inspect this important structural element during a practical completion inspection? In essence they want you to accept that the property is complete. They require you to handover a significant sum of money, but potentially you could be taking on a defective and structurally unsound property! It’s crazy!
The days of buying something based on “trust me it will be all right “are long gone, especially when you are handing over hundreds of thousands of dollars on a new home.
Some of these major firms who are preventing access to the roof space trump out Federal OH&S laws, site inductions and a range of other dubious reasons to stop you from accessing key parts of your home. Get real!
The WA Home Building Contracts Act 1991 specially enables owners and their representatives to inspect a new home. Why are these building firms trying to prevent home owners from validating the work undertaken? What are they hiding?
Houspect Building Inspectors are fully insured Registered Builders or Chartered Building Professionals and carry all of the required insurances, Blue or White Construction Cards and have many years “on site” construction experience. In many cases they will have more construction site experience than the majority of Site Supervisors who are preventing access.
Come on WA construction companies, stop this ridiculous nonsense. Let your clients review your work before you expect them to accept handover of the property and pay you thousands. You know who you are – avoid the name and shame!
Before you sign your new home contract make sure you confirm your builder does not expect you to do a practical completion inspection blind folded! If they do – find another builder!
