The 10 Most Expensive Property Repairs

Would you contemplate spending $20,000 on a second hand car without a pre-purchase inspection report?

While most people wouldn’t hesitate spending a few hundred dollars to protect their $20,000 investment we estimate that close to 70 percent of people baulk at spending a few hundred dollars to get a pre-purchase inspection report when buying a house, unit or flat worth several hundred thousand of dollars.

The potential repair costs for a car that is a ‘lemon’ is probably two or three thousand dollars while a house riddled with termites and structural issues can cost you tens of thousands of dollars to repair. In some instances we have actually seen the cost of repairs blow out to more than six figures. The fact is, this scenario is avoidable by investing in an affordable property inspection report. Our range of inspection reports start at less than $250 and are designed to protect you from buying a property with serious defects. We understand your property purchase could be the largest financial commitment you make in your lifetime and serious defects can turn your dream home or investment property into a financial disaster.

So, why do so many home buyers shy at getting an inspection report and ignore this type of ‘insurance’?

There seems to be several factors but most people buying property ‘judge a book by its cover’. To the untrained eye the property looks good but they don’t see the ‘widow dressing’ that vendors complete that disguise the faults. There are television shows that teach the DIY owner/builder to mask the problems and patch them up for sale! Make no mistake, the risk of buying a property in metropolitan Melbourne with serious faults is real. Over the past 20 years the team at Home Buyers Protection Service have prepared several thousand building inspection reports and our Managing Director Paul O'Toole suggests that close to a third of established properties in Melbourne have a major fault. He says, "Melbourne's extreme weather conditions over the past decade with drought and temperatures ranging from freezing to the forties has taken its toll. We have also had some earthquake and tremor activity in the last few years and these factors combined with some poor workmanship from some trades people has created a time bomb with many suburban properties in disrepair."

Our pre-purchase inspection reports are almost a form of ‘insurance’ designed to give you peace of mind that you are buying a property free of major defects. Our inspection process includes a 228 point checklist designed to identify any property defects and give you an indication of the costs to rectify the problems. In many cases our reports have helped clients negotiate a reduced purchase price and in some cases, the evidence has persuaded clients not to buy the property because of the likely repair costs. We all laugh about properties that are marketed as a ‘renovator’s delight’ but every week we inspect properties that fit this category but are marketed with the tagline, ‘Just Move in – The Work’s all Done’.

Some of the more costly repairs include re-stumping the property, replacement of the roof, re-wiring, pest management and plumbing issues such as guttering and drainage that lead to rising damp and flooding. Of course, you can only lead a horse to water and some clients don’t want to listen to our recommendations because they have fallen in love with the cosmetics or location. We have even inspected houses with massive termite infestations that have eaten away at the structural foundations, the trusses and eaves but clients still buy the property. Our role is to assess the condition of the property and provide an independent report so clients make an informed buying decision.

Over the coming weeks, we will discuss the 10 most common major faults we encounter with dwellings throughout Victoria but particularly in metropolitan Melbourne. With each of the faults we give you some handy hints to help you identify the warning signs supported by photos we have extracted from our massive library. We trust you will find our upcoming blog posts most useful!

  Paul O'Toole - Director

  Home Buyers Protection Service Pty. Ltd.

   ABN: 50 060 367 222

  Grad Dip of Building Surveying

  Award Number 26286 / 2001