You Would Not Believe – New Construction Follies
New yes. Perfect? Not so much…
A significant number of the inspections I do are of new construction. You might think, “What? It’s NEW! What could be wrong with it?” You would be surprised at the things I encounter with new construction.
Note the photo of the floor outlet. Note how the outlet is unusable because of the placement of the cover over the outlet. This was a home that supposed to be move-in ready, mind you. The thing that bothers me most about this particular mistake is that it was done by a person whose mistakes could result in serious injury or death. This electrician did not even bother to open the cover to see if the outlet was usable.
Keeping the Bloom on the Rose
This is why it is just as important to get an inspection done on a newly-constructed home as on a on an existing home. Nothing takes the fun out of moving into a brand new home like coming across a flaw that it may take the builder weeks or even months to get around to correcting. After all, your transaction has closed, and your home is no longer a priority for them.
In my years as a builder and General Contractor, I came to realize that any particular system or item on a home is only as good as the worst crew member on the worst day. Having a trained eye give your new home a thorough going-over can help assure that your your new home experience will be free of nasty little surprises (and even nasty BIG ones!).