Pre-Settlement Inspection Checklist (NSW)
The pre-settlement inspection is your last look at the property before it legally becomes yours. Done properly, it takes an hour and saves you from inheriting someone else's problems. Here's what to actually check.
What it is, and when to do it
A final walkthrough of the property shortly before settlement, usually in the last few days. The point is simple: confirm the property is in the same condition as when you exchanged contracts, that any included items are still there, and that anything the contract required (repairs, cleaning, vacant possession) has actually happened. Book it through the agent, and don't leave it to settlement morning if you can avoid it: you want time to act if something's wrong.
The checklist
- Every appliance that stays: oven, cooktop, dishwasher, aircon, hot water. Turn them on.
- Taps, toilets and drains: run them, flush them, look under sinks for leaks.
- Lights and power points: flick every switch, test a phone charger in a few sockets.
- Walls, floors and ceilings: any new damage since exchange, water stains, missing fixtures.
- Included items from the contract: curtains, blinds, dishwasher, shed keys, pool equipment.
- Rubbish and belongings: the vendor’s stuff should be gone if the contract says vacant possession.
- Garage doors, gates, locks and remotes: test them, and count the keys.
- Outside: fences, taps, and anything the building report flagged for a re-check.
If something is wrong
Don't panic, and don't settle blind. Photograph everything and tell your conveyancer or solicitor immediately: they can ask the vendor to fix it, negotiate an adjustment at settlement to cover the cost, or in serious cases delay settlement. What you shouldn't do is raise it after settlement, because your leverage largely disappears once you own the property.
Where the loan fits in
By inspection time your loan should already be formally approved and the lender booked in for settlement. If the inspection turns up something big enough to delay settlement, tell your broker as well as your conveyancer: lenders need notice to rebook, and a missed settlement date can have costs attached. One more reason to have one broker watching the whole timeline.
Questions, answered
Is a pre-settlement inspection compulsory?
What if the vendor refuses access?
Can settlement be delayed if something is broken?
Talk it through
General information only, so the next step is applying it to your numbers. Book a chat, email ugur@demir.loans or call 0495 000 228. Free, no obligation.