New Construction Inspections

New construction inspections ensure your new home is built according to plan and to high standards of workmanship.

It is tempting to think your new home will be perfect because it is new. But that’s not normally the case. Don’t believe me? Watch some of my new construction videos on Youtube

Unfortunately, a house is sticks & stones put together by humans. so it’s not perfect. Sorry.

Knowing what matters and what doesn’t in a new home is important. And that is what a pre-drywall and pre-closing / final inspection are for.

There are typically 2 phases for New Home Inspections.

Pre Drywall (includes engineering/tie-downs, framing, roofing, electrical, mechanical and plumbing rough in)
Final / Pre-closing (AKA punch list, about a week before closing)

What is inspected

1. Pre-Drywall

Framing – correct size and spacing of load bearing framing members
Tie-downs – Roof to wall, wall to foundation, threaded rods, straps, etc
Nailing – Shear wall, sheathing and framing nailing patterns
Rough in – plumbing, electrical, mechanical. Pipe and wire protection, etc
Vapor Barrier – nailing patterns, overlaps, exterior wall flashing, etc
Roof – shingles, underlayment, flashing, roof penetrations

2. Final / Pre-Closing Inspection

This is very similar to a full home inspection.

Should I have my new construction home inspected?

Yes! A Pre-Drywall inspection finds any problems early so they can be corrected before they are compounded by further construction.

Won’t the local code inspectors find everything?

Not in my experience.

Almost every new home I inspect has a poorly performing air conditioning system. Normally this is due to a low refrigerant charge. Because the air handler and condensing unit are not near each other, there is too little refrigerant for the system to reach peak performance.

I’ve also found ‘completed’ homes that have poor or no attic insulation, plumbing that doesn’t work, outlets without power, etc.

Code vs Home Inspection

A city/county code inspector uses the building code to inspect. This is the minimum requirement for construction practice, not necessarily the highest performance, or what is specified in your building plans.

Code inspectors don’t necessarily look at engineering plans to confirm the structure is being built according to the plans. Their job is to make sure the building meets minimum code requirements.

I have found framing and tie down issues after code inspections. You have to compare the engineering plans to the existing structure. Code inspectors don’t always have time for this. For example, I inspected a brand new home that had passed code inspection, but had no hurricane clips in the garage!

In my typical new construction phase inspections, less than 1/3 of the issues found are code violations.

What is the difference between a “pre-existing” Home Inspection & a “new construction” Home Inspection?

Hard Coat Stucco Diagram

A pre-existing home has wear and tear and has had time for performance issues to surface.

A new construction home is untested. Inspecting the home as it is being built allows you to find and correct any issues that will create performance problems that only show up years down the line, after your home warranty has expired.

At what stages is the home inspected?

New construction is typically inspected in 2 phases to ensure that all components are inspected while still visible. Any problems should be corrected before the next phase is started. The first inspection point is ‘pre-drywall’. At this stage the roof covering is on, the rough HVAC, plumbing and electrical is in, the exterior wall sheathing is sealed, and windows are installed. Basically, the house is weather proof and ready for insulation and drywall to be installed.

The second inspection is about a week before closing. The builder will typically schedule a walk through with the buyer to make sure the house is on track to be finished by closing. This ‘first final’ walk through also gives you, the buyer, a chance to bring up any concerns. I do your closing / final inspection a day or 2 before this ‘first final’ walk through. You get the report and can send it to your builder to discuss at the house during the walk through.

Price

Each of these 2 phase inspections start at $325 for up to 2000 square feet.

More FAQs

More questions and answers regarding the final inspection are on the 1 year builder warranty page. They all apply except for when to do the inspection.