Building a brand new home? It’s a wonderful, wonderfully high-stress undertaking. Most get so caught up about picking the location, the floor plan, and not to mention the finishes, that we forget that the ones we trust to build it are people too. And people can be prone to making mistakes and oversights. Everyone can have a bad day or their mind be somewhere else while at work. But if you are spending your hard-earned money, you don’t want that to happen on your build. Unfortunately, it can.

That’s where hiring your own private inspector can be beneficial. Having another set of well-trained eyes evaluating the work performed at certain stages of construction can catch issues that won’t be seen once the drywall goes up. A professional Phased Inspection from AllCheck Inspections can help ease some of the stress that comes with building a new home.

Foundation Stage

“Sub-slab inspection”, “foundation walk”, or “plumbing underslab inspection” — whatever you would like to call it, this is generally where most phased inspections begin.

AllCheck Inspections, and most builders, recommend scheduling this inspection after the footers and foundation walls are complete, exterior sub-grade dampproofing and drainage have been completed, and the sub-slab plumbing has been installed on the interior.

Framing Stage

“Rough walk”, “frame check”, and “in-wall inspection” are a few names you will hear this phase called.

At this stage, the structure has been fully framed, the roof covering has likely been installed, and the tradesmen have completed their rough-ins. Generally, this inspection is performed just after the air sealing and fire caulking have been completed.

Once the fire caulking process is complete, the builder will begin installing insulation and drywall. As that happens, we see less and less of the inner workings of the home, and it begins taking shape, so to speak. This inspection helps identify concerns before those areas become concealed.

Final Stage

This inspection will typically look much like a standard full home inspection.

We go through the home and verify that finishes, fixtures, systems, and equipment have been installed properly and are functioning as intended. We typically try to schedule this inspection the day before your Orientation Walk with the builder, giving everyone the most up-to-date information possible for that meeting.

Additional Resources

If you want to learn more about our home inspection services, see what is included in our Complete Home Inspection.

Is this your first time hiring professional home inspection services? No worries. Learn what to expect during your inspection.

Want to know what goes into a home inspection report? Check out our Sample Home Inspection Report.