Time and time again, this little-known report has saved clients from thousands of dollars of unexpected costs or headaches. It’s often recommended in building reports however there are very few inspectors qualified to actually offer this service. Wade Spink from Extra Spark Electrical is one of them and someone I have trusted myself when purchasing my own property. Despite my property being only 6 years old when we purchased it, there were a couple of split systems that had been installed poorly which required rewiring a circuit back to the meter box. Had we not, we would have continual issues with the power circuit cutting out as it was connected to the circuit for the washing machine, dryer and back bedrooms (which I use one of for my home office). I’ve embedded some examples from reports we have had done over the years to give you an insight into what to expect when getting one of these reports.
Recalled Wiring Found in 7 Year Old Villa
With clients, we have encountered Infinity Cable in some villas at Kahibah, tenanted properties that were not earthed and wiring that could potentially start a fire or worse, electrocute someone. With the exception where the issues have been too expensive to rectify or too extensive, most have been fixed by the owner or there has been a price adjustment or rebate at settlement. In the case of the Kahibah property, the unit needed to be rewired completely and re-inspected. The matter was investigated by Fair Trading & ACCC but there wasn’t anything untoward by the vendor/developer just an unfortunate set of circumstances.
Smoke Alarms in Owner Occupiers Homes Non-Compliant
The most common issues encountered however are expired or non-compliant smoke alarms, earth points that are either in poor condition or not done properly at all and wiring/electrical work done poorly or clearly by an unqualified individual.
Smoke alarms are usually the least compliant in owner-occupied properties but the scary thing is when we find non-compliant smoke alarms in tenanted properties which have been managed by smoke alarm testing services. We have had several occasions where we have had to have the company come out to reposition alarms that are non-compliant but have been signed off as compliant in recent inspections.
The other reason to get a pre-purchase electrical inspection can be to ensure appliances and air conditioning are working as intended. If these items are not working at settlement, you have proof in the way of the report to use as leverage to ensure you are either compensated or have the items working at settlement. I have recently heard of another buyer’s agent had an issue at settlement proving that a ducted air conditioning system was working at the time of purchase. Having a pre-purchase electrical inspection would have saved the client an expensive repair or the need to immediately replace the motor.
While buying a house can be expensive and buyers are reluctant to spend money in case they are not able to secure a property (in the case of auction properties), its much better than finding out that a house requires urgent work or has insufficient power supply thus causing the circuits to throw before hand than having to find thousands if not ten of thousands once its settled.
To find out more about buying in the Newcastle region, call 0438 502 371 or book a chat.
To book a pre-purchase electrical inspection, please call Wade on 0431 055 411.
