Building a Home? Phase Inspections Can Keep Mistakes From Becoming Too Costly

Every week, the detail-oriented folks at Green Scene Home Inspections will give CandysDirt.com readers an education in inspection. Want to see what they see? Tune in for “Upon Closer Inspection.”

This spring, real estate agents and homebuyers are finding fewer choices on the market as home inventory is at an all-time low. This high demand and lack of available housing puts pressure on home builders to deliver, and that means they’re moving faster than normal.

We have nothing but respect for North Texas home builders, but we are here to tell you that mistakes happen, and if you’re building a new home, you’ll want a Phase Inspector to make sure everything is right from the ground up.

Phase Inspections Are a Four-Part Process

Phase 1: Pre-Pour Inspection 

This takes place just before the slab is poured. And here’s a really good reason why we do that: this is a broken plumbing line that has been filled with dirt found by our inspector the day the slab was to be poured. See how that would have been harder to fix after the fact?

Phase 2: Framing Inspection 

This is completed after the house is framed and before the insulation and walls are put in. 

This photo might take you a second. We’ll wait.

Yep, that’s an outdoor lantern in the shower. So possibly the electrician was looking at the plumbing plans? This would have been caught during a Phase 2 Inspection.

Phase 3: Final Inspection 

This should take place a few days before the final walk-through with the builder and would be the same as a standard home inspection that you get before purchasing a home.

At which point it would be good to know that water pours out of the downstairs light fixture when the upstairs shower is running.

Phase 4: Builder’s Warranty Inspection

Most new homes come with a one-year Builder’s Warranty, and the last Phase takes place 10-11 months after move-in so you can take advantage of the plan to take care of anything that has malfunctioned or broken during the first year.

This is a picture of a common problem we find at Builder’s Warranty Inspections- buckling shingles. This is caused by too much moisture getting into the roof sheathing, and/or faulty initial installation.

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If you are purchasing a newly built home this year, you can hire a Phase Inspector to help during any stage of the process.

You may not find the home until it is partially or completely built. You can read more about Phase Inspections here.