It is easy to assume that a new property does not require to be inspected. After all, what defects can you find in a newly built apartment? Well, turns out that there are many danger signs to look out for in a new property. The levels of shoddy construction work are appalling, especially now that property prices are rising to unprecedented levels. Here are a few reasons why you should have a property inspector check if you want to acquire a new property.

To check the land on which it’s built

In urban areas, proper building land is simply not easily available any more. Land seems to be available only where you don’t really want to live. The nice suburbs have all been built up and the developers are left rummaging for any land that can handle a building.

This scarcity, combined with greed on the developer’s part, has led to buildings coming up on marshmallows. The developer moves large machinery that drains the mallows and lays stone foundations before bringing up a building. Now, after the building has been completed, a combined effect of its weight and the weak nature of the soil below the building cause differential settlement. This is manifested by cracking walls and floors. The houses lose their symmetry where you, for example, find that doors no longer fit into their frames well and cabinets no longer stand solidly on the floor.

To avoid all this, it’s recommended that you get an inspector to check out the integrity of the land upon which a property is built. That way, you will avoid being caught up in a warp of constant repairs that you may never truly escape from since there is no telling when the building will settle and stop cracking up.

To ensure that the building code is adhered to

There are structural requirements that have been set by the state that must be followed when constructing a building. For example, the state may require that slabs for a commercial building be built with 4 inches of concrete. What constructors do is that they build with say 3 inches of slab and move onto their next project. Now, unless you have an inspector versed with the structural requirements, you will not realize that the slabs are not up to standard.

To ensure that fixtures are up to standard

Property developers put up a show house before completing the whole building. They then get their broker to invite potential buyers to the show house to show them what the other units will look like. What the broker doesn’t tell you is that the fixtures in the show house are literally built for ‘showing’ the house. Unless you bring a qualified and knowledgeable property inspector when buying a unit after completion of the building, you might fail to notice that the fittings are not of similar quality to what you saw at the show house.

These are just some of the things a property inspection helps you to determine.