We conducted a snagging inspection on a house today for a client who managed to get the builder to grant us access in haste to complete it. It is a good example of how whilst all may appear fine at first (as this house was aesthetically good to the untrained eye in terms of paintwork and so on) it presented some red flags on closer examination.
On arriving it was clear that the balcony flashing was failing as the wall was completely saturated, efflorescence in the brickwork indicated it was long-standing and the moisture meter was almost off the scale.
Having checked that the gutter was not overflowing using our specialist camera, it became clear that the balcony drainage was failing; not an easy remedy.
Not only this but there was evidence of fairly strong subsidence, with the brickwork cracking in a stepping formation all underneath the coping stones.
As shown in the last picture, the bathroom also had no form of heating, as the unfloor system loop practically stopped at the door and with no wall-mounted radiator it will certainly be unwelcome in the cold winter months to come.
The house was overall a very good standard of internal finish, with only approximately 100 items raised on the report. But it goes to show, that a snagging inspection raises not just minor improvements but also fundamental issues that could question whether to proceed with the plot at all.