Common Building Defects

Building defects are mistakes in your house that can be a threat to your safety. Look out for the common defects and seek a construction lawyer to help you resolve these.

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What are Building Defects?
The Common Building Defects
Building Defects Inspection
Resolving Building Defects
Get Help on your Building Defects

What are Building Defects?

Building defects can result from different types of situations. It can be caused by the contractor’s work, builder’s carelessness or due to natural degradation.

Once finding a defect during our after construction, contact your builder. Your house should be covered by insurances and warranties through the Home Building Act.

The Common Building Defects

You can find a building defect easily. These can be in the form of leaks, cracks, or any misplaced installations present in your house. Here are the most common ones:

Structural Defects

These are the defects that you can find on the foundations of the house such as wall cracks and misplaced wall posts. These are mostly considered as major defects since it may highly threaten your living safety in the house. You have within six years after construction to get your builder to fix it or pay for damages.

To prevent structural defects, it’s essential to ensure proper soil testing before construction and to use quality materials. Regular inspections can also help in early detection and rectification.

Waterproofing Defects

These are defects related to poor drainage and leaking roofs or any problems related to waterproofing. For these problems, you may need to go back to your contractors responsible for the plumbing or for the roofing. These are also major defects.

Waterproofing defects can be prevented by ensuring proper installation of drainage systems and using high-quality waterproofing materials. Periodic checks, especially during the rainy season, can help detect potential issues early on.

External Wall Defects

These are the defects that can happen with a house’s exterior such as brick cracks or concrete spalling. These could happen due to natural events such as cold climate conditions or through man made events like carelessness.

To avoid external wall defects, it’s crucial to use weather-resistant materials and ensure proper construction techniques. Regular maintenance, like repainting and sealing, can also help in prolonging the life of external walls.

Other Defects

These are any other defects that happen on non major parts of the house. If these defects are not a direct threat to your safety, then you have two years after construction for it.

Regular maintenance and inspections are key to preventing these defects and extending the lifespan of your property.

All of these defects can be spotted and verified through a building defects inspection.

Building Defects Inspection

In a building defects inspection, a government-appointed inspector checks the status of the house if it is safe to live in.

Being an inspector requires a license, so you are sure to be in good hands. They are trained to look for defects in different parts of the house, including with the plumbing and electricals.

Doing a building defects inspection can help in lots of ways. It is a legal and transparent proof that the house is safe or there is a defect. So, if someone contests if there’s a defect or not, you can just show them the building defects report.

It’s worth noting that many of these defects can be avoided or minimised with proper preventive measures and by choosing experienced and reputable builders. For those looking to purchase a new property, it’s essential to go beyond the surface and conduct thorough inspections, as many commercial and residential buildings show signs of defects over time. By understanding the signs and causes of these issues, you can take proactive measures to prevent them from becoming more serious problems.

Resolving Building Defects

Finding a building defect can be hard to take in, but there are lots of things that you can do to solve it. Here are some things that you can do:

Home Building Warranties

First, know how you can avail your home building insurance and warranties. These can be indicated in certain terms in your contract, including specific amounts and dates. You just have to talk back to your builder about it.

Constant Negotiations

There can be a time that you would need to enforce your rights. You can only do this when communicating effectively with your builder. Try to talk about it before filing for a dispute. Remember to communicate with empathy, while being mindful of your rights. Doing so would prevent your dispute from escalating to a tribunal or court.

Fair Trading and NCAT

If communication is not enough to make them do work, then it’s the time to seek the help of Fair Trading. This is the tribunal responsible for concerns on building dispute resolution.
But, if the dispute is unsolved even after Fair Trading’s mediation, then you can take it to NCAT. Known as the New South Wales Civil & Administrative Tribunal, they handle various cases such as building disputes through the Consumer and Commercial Division.

Get Help on your Building Defects

Contracts Specialist and a specialist building defects lawyer can help you connect with a building defects inspector, but we can mostly help you with building disputes.

We can help you resolve any of these common defects and guide you through the legal processes involved. Whatever defect that your house has, we surely have helped solve it in our 10+ years of construction law.

Call now and get your first free consult now.

You can be confident that you are getting the right legal advice.

Contracts Specialist is a Sydney-based construction law firm that deals with Building Disputes, Construction Contracts, Debt Recovery, and Security of Payment. With Contracts Specialist, you are ensured that you are in good hands.