The initial inspection went.... hmmmm.... it went well I think. I'm still not exactly sure weather it was a PCI or not but we definitately used it as an opportunity to point out the many (many!) faults.

The house had been cleaned with the floors washed and the carpets steam cleaned as requested (they were still damp when we went through). Our meeting started with the SS taking it very casually as though we were just going to walk through and say "this is great". After pointing out a few things, he decided he might need a notebook and proceeded to note our concerns. He agreed with most of what we pointed out and noted everything that needed fixing which I was very pleased with.

At the time we went through there were still a few things unfinished - the garage doors and driveway (still!) and the laundry tub and a few power points as well.

So what did we pick up on? Here are just a few things...

...the grouting of all the tiling, except the main living area floor, is appalling and even the SS called it "unacceptable". There is grout all over the tiles and the grout lines in many places are higher than the tiles on either side. I can't beleive that anyone could leave a job in this state and think that it was finished!

...The tiles are uneven in the ensuite. There is a visible difference between the top of the feature tile and the top of the rows on either side (and it's the first thing that you see when you walk into the ensuite)

...There is also a visible difference in the feature tile on the bath as well - the feature is at least half a centimetre deeper than the surrounding tiles (they are not at all flush as you pass your hand over them)

...The garage is a shocking job - above the main opening the inside section is a mess where there are cracked plaster sheets where the plasterer has forced the sheet down over a peice of timber that should have been trimmed first (it would have fit then!) and all of the nails holding it in place have popped already. Hard to explain but suffice to say its the result of laziness! There is also several other sections where the edges haven't been finished or sealed and the access door is as rough as it can get.

...The lounge room window has a gap that you can fit your hand into (on the outside) between the frame and the bricks - you can even see the timber frame of the house through it

...The exhaust fans/heat lights that we upgraded to in both bathrooms have been left off and instead have only a single batten light fitting.

...There's a power point missing in the hall and the ones in the lounge still haven't been corrected (and they are at the wrong height)

...The external lights that should be sensor lights are missing their sensors

...The plaster in one room needs the lower sheets from 3 walls to be replaced as they have ripples in them (someone had already marked "damaged" on these walls and then dropped the black pen they were using on the carpet leaving a black mark!! The SS tried to rub it off but I told him I wasn't happy with that! as I said "rubbing it in isn't getting the mark out!!!" )

...There are other things that OH has picked up and we still need to get our inspector to take a look. Again the SS questioned us about "why" we felt it was necessary, claiming that he was just trying to "save us money". My reply was simple... "we want to know that the house is structurally sound... he picked up things in the first inspection and we need to know that those have been corrected and that no other mistakes have been made since". SS tried to tell us that we'd already had him check the structure and that those things have been fixed so there's no need. We won't be swayed however and are booking the inspector anyway!!

SS has asked for a week to fix up the stuff that we've pointed out before we bring in our inspector. Then there will no doubt be more to fix (which they should do in 2 weeks unless it's something major). The SS is also taking a week off next weeks So I expect that we are still at least 3 weeks off handover (more likely more!).

No problem though - we're booking the fencer to start next week regardless. The verandah will be started soon and I'm also in the process of lining up the concreter. We may have all of this done before we move in at this rate!!