Mueller Austin Homes

You are about to close on your brand new home in the perfect subdivision, and you schedule the final walkthrough with the builder. You could be about to make a costly mistake, unless you prepare yourself for the walkthrough process.

You are no doubt excited at this point at the prospect of moving in, but it pays to check your emotions at the door when you do the walkthrough, and to enlist as much help as you can. This is the time to get things rectified and to get plans to rectify things you find in writing. Here’s are my top five tips for Austin homebuyers to getting the most from the homebuying walkthrough process.

Consider who is working for whom. The builder’s sales staff and general contractors represent the builder. They have no formal responsibility to the buyer aside from a nebulous sense of customer satisfaction. They’re nice people, and may want to make small talk as you focus on the walkthrough. This is distracting. Take charge of the situation and let them know that you’re trying to concentrate.

Your REALTOR ® on the other hand, is explicitly representing your best interests. Their job is to help you with the process and ensure you get what you are due.

Be prepared. This isn’t just for boy scouts, this is for walkthroughs. Print out a checklist, take a clipboard and take some tools with you so that you can control the process. And make sure that you allow plenty of time – don’t let the builder rush you through the appointment. Make sure that the builder has all of the utilities turned on and systems enabled.

Handy items to take along:

• Clipboard, pen, pencil, checklist. The National Association of Homebuilders has a good overall checklist.
• A flashlight for inspecting the far reaches of the attic
• Hosepipe for spraying windows and gutters
• Level for checking doorways
• A digital camera and/or video camera for documenting what you find
• Your team…

Assemble a team. Ask your REALTOR ® to come along, and anyone else who you know who is accustomed to looking at real estate – if you have a friend who is a general contractor, they might be a good choice. Despite what the builder might tell you, you can take as many people as you like with you, and you are more likely to spot things if you do.

Here are some suggested team roles – not every role requires a person, but it’s good to have your different hats on when in the walkthrough:

• Documentor – to take notes and photos of everything that you find
• Eyeballer – paint and drywall finish, chipped surfaces
• Faucet operator to turn on all of the faucets and check the toilets flush
• Switcher – make sure all lights and fans work as designed
• White-gloved sergeant – check that everything is spotlessly clean
• Opener – windows, doors and cabinets should all open and close freely
• Waterer – see that drainage is correct and gutters work as designed, and windows and doors shouldn’t allow water penetration.

Get a licensed real estate inspector. The best source of advice on structural issues is a licensed home inspector. Unless your REALTOR ® is also an inspector, they can’t tell you whether the HVAC unit has the correct temperature differential, or if the GFCIs are functioning correctly. Their advice will be to hire a professional

The builder might suggest that hiring a licensed home inspector is a waste of money as the home has already been inspected by the City. It isn’t. I’ve never been to a home inspection on a new home where the inspector hasn’t found something that could have had costly consequences if not corrected before move-in.

On numerous occasions, home inspectors that my clients have worked with have found that the HVAC was not operating effectively. It’s a bit disappointing when buying a new home, bur sometimes the HVAC is not filled with enough refrigerant. They’ve also found dishwashers that don’t drain, GFCIs wired up incorrectly, missing attic insulation and unsecured ranges that could tip over.

An inspector will not comment on the finish of items, such as paint overspray or drywall dings, so make sure you have that covered by the rest of the team.

Take notes, take pictures and video. The builder will give you some blue tape with which to mark items that need rectification – items that get put onto a punch list. The builder will take notes, and may even explain why some items don’t need to be addressed. In their opinion.

Be prepared to take advice on this from an external source if the explanation isn’t satisfactory – the builder doesn’t represent you after all. It is key to take notes of your own so that you can cross check later. Be prepared to demand that things get resolved to your satisfaction before you sign off any acceptance forms.

Take photos or document what you see by video. I’ve found pieces of blue tape that never got removed (as they were out of plain sight) when I’ve been back to check on alleged completion of a punchlist. I wouldn’t have known what things to check without photographs and notes to review.

This is the biggest purchase of our lives for most of us. Preparing for the walkthrough and conducting it in a thorough fashion will ensure that you get the most for your money and that your dream home is really move-in ready.

Garreth Wilcock is a real estate consultant. He specializes in Central and East Austin Homes. Call 512 694 8873 or contact him at his website if you want a free valuation of your Austin home. You can search the entire Austin MLS by map   at his website.