Final Inspection
We all know that house hunting can be a daunting and drawn out experience, but when you find the right home it is all worth it.
You spend your time visualising where your furniture will go, whether everything will fit into the shed and start to forget about the more important issues.
You should also check that any special conditions contained in the Contract have been attended to. This may include such things as the seller being required to erect a fence, repaint or re-carpet a room. If these special conditions have not been fulfilled by the seller, then you may be entitled to delay settlement until such time as these conditions have been fulfilled. You may also be entitled to claim compensation (also known as penalty interest) from the seller for the delay in settlement. We will arrange this on your behalf if you are entitled to it.
Most importantly, there is no warranty period. Buying a house is not like buying anything else. Once settlement has occurred, there is a limited amount that can be done if you discover that something is not as it should be. Any action that you may take against the seller to have something repaired or replaced after settlement has been effected is likely to to need the involvement of a legal professional, which can often be more costly than repairing or replacing the item.
The lesson to take from this is to ensure that you conduct a thorough final inspection. The purchase of a home is likely to be the biggest financial investment that you will make so take your time and ensure that you check that all items function as they should and that all special conditions on the Contract have been fulfilled.
Under the Joint Form of General Conditions, which forms part of each Contract, the buyer is entitled to:
- One final inspection within five business days before settlement. This final inspection must be booked with the real estate agent so that the seller can agree to the inspection time and date. We recommend that you arrange the final inspection around three business days before settlement so that anything that can go wrong is likely to show up but it allows sufficient time for tradespeople to attend and remedy the outstanding matter.
- A buyer may be accompanied by up to two people at the inspection.
- The inspection must be conducted on a business day between 9am and 4pm however many sellers and real estate agents are flexible on this time frame.
You should inform your conveyancer once you have completed your final inspection and advise them of any outstanding issues, however if all is in order, we ask that you fax or email the “Final Inspection Authority” as confirmation that you authorise us to proceed to settlement. The Final Inspection Authority will be issued to you once the Contract becomes unconditional and is usually included in the letter with the Transfer of Land. If you cannot locate the Final Inspection Authority, simply contact us and we will email or fax you a new copy.