Sample Pre Purchase Report on a 3 Bedroom in Island Bay

This pre purchase report is based on what can be visually seen at the date of the report. No testing is carried out or wall linings removed. This report does not cover what is underground. No outstanding legal or local authority matters are covered. We recommend looking at the local authority records building folder to check for outstanding building permit or building consent issues. You can usually do this for free.

The building is judged on the basis of the acts, regulations, bylaws and installation instructions enforce at the time the building was erected or services installed.

Not every fault will be listed if we believe it is of an insignificant nature. This report does not cover valuation, land surveying and land geology. This report is a list of faults that can be seen. There are faults that are not possible to see if it has been raining such as dampness outside. Some faults are more of a maintenance issue such as small spots of flaking paint or scratches. It is unlikely that you can renegotiate the price after the first offer on items of a small nature e.g. a cracked light switch, a moldy patch on the carpet or scratch on a door.

Qualifications of our staff – There are four registered or licensed trades in the building industry. These are drainage, gas fitting, plumbing, and electrical. We have license in all these trades. Registered builder refers to the membership of an association, and not a qualification, like in the licensed trades.
E. O. E. Trading as Southern Consulting Ltd.

General
Rot and Borer
Some buildings contain rot and borer inside wall linings. If it is inside the wall lining, we cannot determine whether there is little or no evidence of it in other parts of the house. There is always some risk when buying a property.

Not all timber is easy to access, thus we check a random sample for borer in the roof space and under the floor. There may be an isolated pocket of timber that has borer, so you should allow carrying out repairs if it happens. The longer you are in a building the more you see once you own it. It is not economic to check every piece of timber. Light borer is fine as it can be treated, unless it has got to a point where the timber has failed completely. In this case replacing that timber will solve the matter. We can carry out fumigation to halt borer at that point. Even new houses can have borer if the builder gets his boxed timber mixed with the construction timber.

Stucco and Plastered Buildings
Houses built in the 40s-60s with a cement plaster or “Stucco” exterior cladding are prone to rot and borer between the walls. It is impossible to see until we remove wall linings. In recent times stucco or plaster, known as monolithic cladding now, is popular again and rot has appeared in new buildings as well. We cannot see it until it appears as mould sometimes shows no signs in early stages.

Period Buildings, Old Codes or Regulations

Period buildings like the houses build more than 50 years ago are usually not built to any code. In fact some buildings were built with the partitioning timber from the hold of the sailing ships. You cannot judge a period house on the basis of the current Building Codes, as they would all fail. You have to expect some work to raise them to today’s building standards. There are things that could be classified as a fault e.g. woodworm marks and floors out of level that make up the character of the house.

Most old homes and even some new homes are little out of level or have a bouncy floor. On older homes, equalizing building level is an expensive task. It can mean that windows and doors no longer work or they have to be altered to a great extent. In this case it is often recommended that the house is not re-leveled after repiling to protect the character of the house. The walls will often be torned during repiling and this is another reason that the house is not re-leveled. After a house is repiled, it is not possible to see the quality of the job. All the work is underground i.e. the state of the ground before they poured concrete. It is also difficult to see bounce or level when furniture is installed as the bounce is often lessened by furniture. It may be possible to strengthen a bouncy floor but replacing all the timber is not recommended. Unless they are rotten or borer ridden as the house may get most of its value from its originality.

The extent sellers go to cover faults from prospective buyers and pre purchase report inspections.

• Heavy items positioned so faults cannot be seen. E.g. out of level, rot, bounce etc.
• Paint applied over faults e.g. rot, rust, etc.
• Paneling installed over borer and other faults.
• Doors locked so that area cannot be inspected.
• Babies sleeping in rooms to make them out of bounds.
• Access holes restricted or nailed shut.
• Limitations place on inspector e.g. no touching.
• People positioned in places so we cannot stand there.
• House only sold during time of year when the problem does not exist.
• Unrealistic time limits placed on inspector and buyer to limit the amount of time an inspection can be undertaken.
• Delicate furniture placed in positions to hide faults. Moving the items may break them.

There is a limit to the amount of checking or access to a building for sale. We cannot move all the furniture, as this is not acceptable to the seller.

Engineer’s Reports

If your bank requires an engineer’s report let us know as we can provide structural engineer report. There is an extra charge for providing structural engineer report.
R E P O R T
Date of Inspection – 14/5/03
Time of Inspection – noon
Weather at time of Inspection – fine
Instructions Given – Pre purchase report
Access Provided – Agent – xyx
Persons in attendance – Doug Brennan and agent
Type of Inspection – Visual / Instrument Based / Destructive / Look and View.
Reason for Report – Pre Purchase –
Incomplete Parts of the Inspection.-
Sources of Information –
Recommendations – Engineer – Geo Technical – Drainage Specialist – Surveyor- Valuer

Grounds

• Trees checked.
• Gates checked.
• Fences checked.
• Sheds not applicable.
• Garage has a unit above, which is almost self-contained. This may not have WCC approval. It appears to have been done recently. It is not clear whether it was part of the house building consent. The shower has no curtain or step. There is no tempering valve to the hot water cylinder. It may be left out if the fittings existed and the work done recently was upgrading. There was no water coming out of the shower rose. The owner said the water was turned off. The power supply is from the garage power.
• The terminal vent on the drains has no cowl.
• Check the right of way to access under house at the rear.
• Paving checked.

Exterior

• Weatherboards checked – has rot in small spots on some edges.
• Window flashings checked – rusted yes – some are very old.
• Pipe flashing at rear needs done.
• The vent off waste pipe at rear is missing, the front is not done, owner to do.
• Glazing broken – yes – a couple of small cracks in some panes.
• Doors checked.
• Access doors checked.
• Some pipes at the rear are not sealed where they exit the building.
• The flue from the water heater needs replacing as it is currently missing.
• Check to see if the gas fitting done recently by the current owner has gas certificates.

Roof

• Corrugated iron – no rust seen.
• Valleys and ridges checked.
• Flashings checked.
• Pipes and cowls checked.
• Chimneys checked. Some mortar fallen out.

Under the house

• Piles checked.
• Bearers checked.
• Joists checked.
• Plumbing checked.
• Dampness checked.
• Rubbish ok or needs cleaning out.
• Rot checked most old homes have small spots.
• Borer checked.
• Access door is at the rear. This area has medium amount of borer.
• The piles are concrete. The house is out of level.
• The bath waste needs finishing under the house.
• The house is not level some parts have been leveled.

Ceiling Space

• Rot checked.
• Borer checked. There are signs of rodents. Medium borer, some timber may need replacement soon.
• Plumbing checked.
• Polybutylene identified which is prone to leakage and rodent attack.
• Vent pipes checked.
• Joists checked.
• Rafters Checked.
• Struts and supports checked.
• The access hole is in the kitchen.
• Insulation is fiberglass and there is a bout 5% left to do.
• The chimney is old.
• The gas vent pipes are too close to the timber.
• Electrical – hard to know what’s left.

Interior

Hall

• Cupboards checked.
• Catches checked.
• Door checked.
• Doors Checked.
• Ceiling checked.
• Switches checked.
• Front door checked.

Bed 1

• Window checked.
• Door checked.
• Catch checked.
• Light switch checked.
• Floor covering checked.
• Cupboard checked.
• Cupboard door checked.
• 2 of the windows need work.
• The en-suite bathroom has no windows, it has a fan.
• The vanity plug needs work, owner to do.

Bed 2

• Windows need work.
• Window checked.
• Door checked.
• Catch checked.
• Light switch checked.
• Floor covering checked.
• Cupboard checked.
• Cupboard door checked.
• Catch checked.

Bed 3

• Windows need work.
• Window checked.
• Door checked.
• Catch checked.
• Light switch checked.
• Floor covering checked.
• Cupboard checked.
• Cupboard door checked.
• Catch checked.

Laundry

• Tub checked.
• Taps checked.
• Washing machine checked.
• Washing machine outlet checked.
• Knob needed.
• Windows need work.

Bathroom

• Window checked.
• Door checked.
• Catch checked.
• Light switch checked.
• Floor covering checked.
• Cupboard checked.
• Cupboard door checked.
• Catch checked.

Kitchen

• The oven is gas, right hand knob not going ignition problems.
• Window checked.
• Door checked.
• Catch checked.
• Light switch checked.
• Floor covering checked.
• Cupboard checked.
• Cupboard door checked.
• Catch checked.

Dining

• Windows need work.
• Window checked.
• Door checked Catch checked.
• Light switch checked.
• Floor covering checked.
• Cupboard checked.
• Cupboard door checked.
• Catch checked.

Lounge

• Front – gas fire not going.
• All the windows need work, the whole room needs decorating.
• The family room windows don’t open.

Family Room

• This room has no windows that open. Work definitely needs done.
• Decorating needs done.

General

• Most of the house has been renovated but some items are not finished.
• Whole house has borer in mild to medium quantities. A house of this age you have to expect some faults. The exterior has been recently painted. Sometimes this makes it difficult to see rot without punching a hole through paint.
• The house has been repiled by past owners. The quality of this type of work is not always completely known, but is usually done as cheaply as possible.
• The house is not leveled.
• The chimneys are old.
• Deck- check building consent.
• The state of the house is clean and decorating is tidy.
• Check gas certificates for fires and gas pipes.
• Flue needs replacement – owner to do.
• The hot water cylinder is gas,( Junkers). It is small for the amount of plumbing.

Major Remedial Costs Associated With This Report

Notes – the cost indicated here are approximate only and depend heavily on the extent to which repairs are carried out, the quality of the work done and the timing of the work.
These repairs may be of varying importance to some prospective purchasers.
The total repairs may not always be deducted from the purchase price of the house as the seller may have already priced the house to sell. We recommend a valuation report.
$ 3500 Replacement hot water heater.
$ 100 Knob laundry taps.
$2000-6000 Windows in each room, most rooms have at least one or two windows that need repairing.
$200 Oven ignitor to gas burner on cooker.
$1200-3500 gas fire lounge at front. Assumes chimney is ok.

Sample Pre Purchase Report. Call today for an unbiased report. We can help with pricing of repairs.

Note: Prices mentioned above are subject to change without prior notice.