The Process of Purchasing a Property in Perth

So you are looking at purchasing a property? It is highly recommended that building and pest inspections are factored into the budget. For a relatively small sum, you can potentially save thousands of dollars and ensure the property is not a lemon.

Once you have found the dream home, the estate agent will require a contract to be signed upon submitting the offer. Most estate agents in Perth, use REIWA contracts for the sale of residential properties. REIWA stands for Western Australia’s real estate institute.

During the signing of this contract, it is advised that additional clauses are included to cover the building & timber pest inspections. A subject to finance clause is also highly recommended!

The building inspection clause will allow for a structural pre-purchase building inspection to be conducted on the property.

Any structural faults identified during the inspection would then be the responsibility of the home owner to rectify prior to settlement. Structural faults are typically categorised as major defects in a building report. The definition of a structural fault is a deviation from its intended performance.

Australian Standard 4349.1

AS 4349.1 – 2007 Inspection of buildings Part 1: Pre-purchase inspections – Residential buildings details the minimum requirements that a pre-purchase building inspection report is required to conform with.

This standard also states that the inspector must be suitably qualified and experienced in order to provide advice to prospective interested parties who are purchasing a property. The standard covers all freestanding, semi-detached, terrace and villa houses along with townhouse and multi-unit buildings.

Prior to a building inspection taking place, a pre-inspection agreement is always required to be issued. This agreement between the client and inspector defines the purpose, scope and acceptance criteria upon which the inspection is undertaken. Never engage the services of a building inspection firm who do not issue this documentation.

The building on which the inspection is being undertaken is always required to be compared with a similar building in age and construction type and in accordance with the accepted practices at the time of construction. The comparison is also accessed against a building which is in reasonable condition.

Significant Items

The definitions of the significant items identified in each report are detailed as follows:

Safety Hazards: any major defect that is an urgent safety hazard to occupants. Major Defect: defects that require rectification works to avoid the development of unsafe conditions. Minor Defect: commonly identified in most properties including cracking to walls and ceilings, corrosion of materials and general deterioration.

Recommendations may also be given, when applicable for further specialist inspections, by suitably qualified inspectors for specific aspects of the building e.g: plumber, structural engineer, electrician etc.

Where cracking has occurred to masonry walls, the damage is categorised as per Australian Standard AS 2870: Residential slabs and footings requirements.

This standard describes typical damage and assigns a damage category based on the crack width. This category will then determine the required remedial works. The damage is categorised from 0 – Negligible to 4 – Severe. Crack width limits are increased by 50% for easily repaired plasterboard partitions.

Master building Inspectors building inspection reports are always presented with a clear and comprehensive approach, along with evidenced based conclusions detailing the overall condition of the property.[/cs_text]