Home buyers racing to snatch up scarce property are foregoing important checks such as pest and building inspections, fresh research shows.
After asking Aussies across the nation about their experiences buying and selling homes, InfoTrack’s first-ever State of Real Estate report revealed three-quarters of property owners reported “challenges” in the market.
During the survey’s duration in May and April in 2023, prices were unsurprisingly the biggest concern for prospective property buyers, with 21 per cent of people saying they struggled to find a home in their price range.
A close second was buyers not being able to find a property at all, with 14 per cent saying there wasn’t any available land in their area.
But what had InfoTrack’s Head of Property Australia, Lee Bailie, really worried was buyers foregoing important safety checks and pest inspections in favour of just getting their foot in the door.
“In the rush to snap up available homes, more buyers seem to be compromising on important property checks in favour of putting in a speedy offer,” said Bailie.
“Not even half of all respondents (46 per cent) had a pest inspection carried out, for example.”
Until now, these checks have been a vital part of purchasing a home. A building inspection looks at the building itself, inside and out, for any issues from major structural faults to minor defects, maintenance issues and safety hazards that can then be fixed by the builder.
Outside, this include things like cracking, rising damp, drains and gutters, sheds, retaining walls and fences, windows and roofing. Inside, it looks for cracks in the walls, uneven or springy floorboards, leaky ceilings and the quality of finishes and fittings.
The more thorough investigations even investigate roof spaces (for any defects with the insulation or framing) and under the floor.
Do you really need a pre-purchase inspection?
It’s true that building and pest inspections aren’t a mandatory part of the purchasing process, but if I was dropping a cool mill on a 70 year old Sydney property – I’d want to know what’s under the hood.
But it’s not just aging properties that need a once-over. If social media accounts like the hilarious siteinspection are to be believed, defectual properties are more common than ever thanks to a recent wave of builders rushing to get the job done on time and under budget.
With over 300 thousand followers and hundreds of videos calling out dodgy builders in some of Australia’s most popular suburbs for home builds, this viral TikTok inspector makes a good case for why you should book in your pre-purchase checks.
In just his latest video, siteinspection calls out several brand new batch of townhouses (valued at $650,000) for their dodgy workmanship – all of which was signed off by a building surveyor.
@siteinspections #siteinspections #tiktokinspector #newhome #buildinginspection #dodgy #roofing #leaks ♬ original sound – The TikTok Inspector
“The garage is pretty bad,” he says. “The bricks are complete shamozzle.
“How can you sign off this job? Obvious non-compliant items are everywhere.”
With inspections usually only seeing homeowners fork out a maximum of $1000, the pre-purchase checks seem to be a no-brainer for homeowners looking to avoid costly fixes down the road.
