An 11th month warranty inspection, also known as A 1 YR warranty inspection, is the last chance to get any issues fixed in the newly built home while it’s still the builder’s responsibility to do repairs. At this point, the house has experienced all four seasons and had some time to settle. Spring rains, winter ice, fall storms, and more have all had their go at your house, and it’s a good time to check up on it.
If your builder hasn’t allowed any earlier inspections this is a fantastic opportunity! A home inspector will check out all the major systems of the home- heating, cooling, electrical, and plumbing. Your inspector will also check the grounds, doors, windows, soffits (eaves!), the crawlspaces, and the attic. A good home inspector will also walk your roof when it’s safe to do, which it usually is. The roof is an important, but often overlooked area of the home. Read here for more.
While a county, or civic inspector, has inspected the home, they don’t walk the roof. They also have to operate with very significant time constraints, around half an hour per inspection. They work hard, but they’ve got a lot of work to do and not enough time to do it. A home inspector will take two to three hours, more for larger homes, to thoroughly check the house. A home inspector also looks far beyond building code minimums.
If you have gotten earlier inspections, it’s still a great opportunity to get another look at the house before your builder’s warranty expires. Even though you’ve gotten an earlier home inspection or two, please allow the full time for the inspector to carefully examine the entire property, not just review items found in previous inspections, as conditions may have changed. It’s a new inspection. In short, to get the full value, it has to take the full time.
Afterward, you’ll have a written report by an expert to take to the builder and get issues resolved. With a Reliable home inspection, you will get your fully photographed written report the same day we do the inspection. Your report is organized with the big ticket, builder responsibility items first so you don’t have to search and dig through the report, or bookmark pages everywhere, or anything like that before talking with your builder. Later, when you want to plan your own maintenance to keep your house looking and feeling great you’ll have the report to help prioritize, which can save on time, headaches, and money!
Your new home is a big investment, and after its first year, a home can show signs of system or component malfunction, unusual wear, and settlement. An 11th month warranty home inspection will help protect that investment and keep you and your family safer. Check out the new construction section of our website for pictures, insights, and sample reports. And as always,
Thanks for reading!
If you found this article helpful, I encourage you to check back later for the rest of our New Construction Home Inspection Series!
Pre-drywall
- Before the insulation and drywall.
- More on a Reliable pre-drywall inspection
Final/Finish Out
- Right before you settle and money changes hands
- Make sure the home is move-in ready
- More on a Reliable finish inspection
1Yr Warranty/11th Month (this article)
- 11 months into the warranty so the house has seen all four seasons
- A great opportunity if your builder didn’t allow earlier inspections
- More on a Reliable 1 Yr Warranty inspection