Here's the scenario - you are buying a house or unit and the real estate agent has something extra to offer you; a free building inspection report (vendor report) to give you peace of mind that nothing is wrong with the dwelling.
Commonsense will tell you that a report supplied by an agent or vendor is most likely going to be biased. It may have been done by an unlicensed building or pest inspector who receives ongoing work from the agent. Most likely, potential problems may be ignored or understated resulting costly repairs to the unsuspecting buyer down the track.
Buying a property is both stressful and exciting and when you find that ideal home the last thing you want to hear is that there are underlying problems such as:
Rising Damp
Cracks
Termites or other pests
Non-compliant swimming pools
Mould
Non-compliant building or renovations
Structural damage
Retaining wall problems
Roof structure problems
Gutter problems
and the list goes on!
As a purchaser, if you employ a fully qualified licensed building inspector you will get a detailed report that will outline any defaults. This gives you the option to walk away or negotiate a discounted price for the property. Failing to do this, could end up with costly rectifications out of your pocket and problems selling the house in the future.
It might seem convenient, and one less hassle, to have a report supplied by the vendor/agent but down the track it could be extremely costly for you and don’t think that you can go after the inspector if you were the one that didn’t employ them in the first place.
Buyer Beware!
When purchasing a home always employ an inspector that you have researched and is qualified and licensed. Cheap inspection reports may seem attractive however you get what you pay for.