Building Inspection Types and Times

Inspecting a condominium, a single-family home or a multi-unit takes time. A good building inspector such as Building Property Inspections Melbourne will spend several hours there. It is therefore important that current owner-sellers, real estate brokers and prospective homeowners collaborate, and set aside several hours in their calendars to do this. How long does an inspection take?

This naturally depends on several factors including, the type of inspection, the type of expertise, the type of property to be inspected, the constraints related to the visibility and accessibility of the systems and components being inspected and the number of questions the applicant will ask the inspector during his inspection round and to which he is required to respond.

The main types of inspections

Non-exhaustive visual inspection

When we talk about building inspections, we often talk about the non-exhaustive visual inspection of installed, visible and accessible systems and components of the property whether it be a condominium or a single-family home. or a multi-unit.

The exhaustive visual inspection

Quite often, people confuse exhaustive visual inspection and thorough inspection. Given the constraints related to visibility and accessibility it is very rare that a visual inspection is exhaustive. In fact, unless a house is completely empty, it is impossible to inspect it exhaustively.

In-depth visual inspection

As mentioned in the section above, people often confuse exhaustive visual inspection and thorough inspection. But, they can be very different. In exhaustive visual inspection, we will rather talk about careful inspection instead of thorough inspection. The main reason is because a thorough inspection is more like an expertise.

Expertise

A building inspector generally has sufficient but limited overall knowledge of the installed systems and components of a building and their operations. Quite often, in his non-exhaustive, or even exhaustive, visual inspection report, the building inspector will suggest to his client to call on an expert to give his opinion on a specific problem detected during his inspection. This is perfectly normal. At that moment, we are talking about expertise.

During an expert appraisal, the mandated expert will not be limited to detecting problems, or to suspecting their existence. He will work to find the causes to make the recommendations that are required to his client. And this, even if it implies:

• moving furniture
• the opening of walls
• the use of specialised equipment
• the order of complementary expertise
• planning several visits

And obviously :

• a very long delay

Note that in order to make an expertise involving the opening of a wall, you must hire a contractor holding a building contractor’s license. It is he who will practice the openings and who will be in charge of repairing.

Some examples of experts and expertise

Structural engineers

• Problem of subsidence of the foundation

Medical laboratory

• Air qualitytest
• Mold test
• Asbestos test
• Pyrite test
• Pyrrhotite test

Building Contractors, Specialised

• In foundation repair
  • waterproofing
  • Clogging cracks
  • Repairing the plaster
• In Installation of drains
  • Existing drain unblocking
  • Installation of new drains
• In insulation
  • Insulation of the attic
  • Insulation of the cellar
• In ventilation
  • Ventilation of the attic
  • Installation of an air exchanger
• In sealing
  • Caulking the contours of doors and windows
• In installation of doors and windows
  • Repair of existing doors and windows or installation of new doors and windows
• In external coatings
  • Bricklayer-Mason
    • Repointing of crumbled mortar joints
    • Repair of cracks
    • Repair of beef bellies
    • Landscaping
    • Changing lighters and lintels, cracked
  • On the roof
    • Repair of existing coating or installation of a new coating
      • Steel
      • Asphalt shingles or other types of shingles
      • Multilayer bitumen
      • Elastomeric membrane or other types of membranes
    • In excavation and earthworks
      • Leveling of the ground
      • Construction of a retaining wall

Plumber

• Installation of a submersible pump
• Location or replacement of the water inlet
  • Copper water inlet

Electrician

• Replacement or enhancement of an electrical panel

Duration to be provided by type of inspection and type of property

How long does a building inspection take

In the table below, we present approximations of the different durations for most types of inspections offered by professional building inspectors and experts. The information is provided for information only and may vary from one property to another and from a building inspector or expert to another.

Type of property to inspect	Duration for a non-exhaustive visual inspection	Duration for a comprehensive inspection	Duration for a thorough inspection	Duration for an expertise
Split Condo Condo	2.5 to 3 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Condo undivided co-ownership	2 to 2.5 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Town house without garage	2 to 2.5 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Townhouse with garage	2.5 to 3 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Detached house without garage	2 to 2.5 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Detached house with garage	2.5 to 3 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Semi-detached house without garage	2 to 2.5 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Semi-detached house with garage	2.5 to 3 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Ancestral house	2.5 to 3 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Apartment block (per apartment)	1 to 1.5 hours	+/- 2 hours	2 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Chalet	2 to 2.5 hours	+/- 3 hours	3 hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Mobile home	1.5 to 2 hours	+/- 2.5 hours	2.5+ hours	Depends on the type of expertise
Mini home	1 to 1.5 hours	+/- 2 hours	2 hours