Advantage
Property Inspections. inc

Buyers
of Newly Constructed Homes.
WHY HAVE A
NEW HOME INSPECTED?
Gallatin
County Home Buyers
Montana has no licensure program to ensure building contractors are up to
date on the changing building codes. Some believe, if you are purchasing a home
outside the Bozeman or Belgrade city limits, the codes don't apply. The (IRC) International Residential Codes & The (IECC)
International Energy Conservation Code were adopted the State of Montana. All
new homes are to meet the minimum IRC & IECC standards. Gallatin
County has no inspection program to ensure these codes are followed. The
construction of your new home will not be inspected.
While a home inspection is
not a code compliant inspection, API is the only inspection company with code enforcement background
and certified by The International Code Council (ICC) as an IRC Building,
IRC/ UPC- Plumbing and IRC- Mechanical
Inspector to perform new construction
inspections.
1.
API will inspect your home before you take possession to insure
everything is in working order.
2.
API can provide a continuing progress inspection
reports during construction. Inspections stages include open ditch footing inspection,
rough frame wall inspection, insulation, rough plumbing & wiring. A final
inspection is performed after all appliances and mechanicals and fixtures are installed.
We can also provide a post
inspection about one month before your warranty period expires. This will
generate a punch list for the contractor to perform warranty repairs or other
deficiencies found in your new home.
New
Construction Home Buyers
The Bozeman Building Code Department inspects each new
home within the city limits by phases of construction. These hard working public
officials do their very best to insure the building codes are followed during
construction. These inspections are not a guarantee that everything is fully
functional or operational, and once in a while things get overlooked. An API, home inspector spends several hours in a home before
closing and may discovers items not normally covered by a city construction
inspection. In the past year our inspections have revealed everything
from leaking dishwashers, gas leaks, improperly installed windows, missing attic
insulation to name a few.
New Construction Inspection

The following is a partial list of
supplemental inspection services that we
offer for a building that is under
construction:
Plan review: Plans will
be used to determine that the building
is constructed as indicated by the
drawings.
Foundation inspection:
This inspection would include
observations of the footing excavations,
steel / bolt / hold-down placement,
underground plumbing (or other
underground mechanical present) and
foundation / slab. Rough grading around
the building and other site related
items present during this visit will be
evaluated. This inspection would need to
be scheduled within the week prior to
pouring the foundation (at least two
days before).
Rough framing / mechanical
inspection: Rough framing
includes observations of the framing for
size of members, steel connectors,
fastening, shear wall nailing, anchor
bolt and hold-downs (as shown on the
plans, no engineering is performed by
this company). Mechanical, including
air-conditioning, furnace, ductwork,
filters, registers, exhaust fans present
(furnace may not be present / will not
function till the final inspection).
Rough plumbing including water supply
piping, drain waste and vent piping,
fuel gas piping, observations for proper
slope of waste pipe and water pipe
attachment and material separation from
wood / metal. Rough electrical,
including cabling / conduit, devices,
boxes and fittings. This inspection
needs to be scheduled within the week
prior to installing insulation (at least
two days before).
Roofing / waterproofing:
This inspection includes the
underlayment, flashings, headlap,
nailing and general installation of
roofing materials. This inspection is
normally inspected during the rough
framing / mechanical visit and we will
look at the underlayment and flashings
at that time. The rest of the roof will
be inspected during the final inspection
site visit. Another site visit can be
arranged if the roof is not ready during
the rough framing inspection.
Stucco / siding inspection:
This inspection includes observations of
building paper for proper lap /
placement, window / door flashing, weep
screed and transition flashing between
dissimilar materials. This inspection
needs to be scheduled the week prior
starting the stucco scratch coat (at
least two days before), for a three coat
stucco system. For wood siding or other
exterior systems, scheduling would be on
an “as-needed” basis depending on the
type of material.
Insulation inspection:
This inspection includes observations of
proper coverage and clearance for
insulation and caulking / foam in the
walls, around doors / windows and in the
ceiling / roof. This inspection would
need to be scheduled one or two days
before the installation of interior
drywall.
Drywall inspection:
This inspection includes observations
for the proper placement and nailing of
the interior drywall. This inspection
needs to be scheduled one or two days
before the start of the drywall taping.
We propose to use an NCR report
delivered on site for this inspection.
Final inspection: This
inspection includes observations and
operation of the building and its major
systems. Our inspection process and
report meets (or exceeds) these
standards in ways designed to reveal the
complete condition of your building in a
fair, balanced and accurate way.
All utilities must be on for this
inspection to be completed and the
furnace / air conditioning system must
be started up by the AC contractor prior
to this inspection. This
inspection (when combined with the
others noted above) will give you the
information you desire about the
construction of your new building. This
inspection should be scheduled before
you close escrow, however we realize
that this depends on the builder having
the building ready and allowing us to
have access, so this inspection is
sometimes done after you close escrow.
If this happens you can accept the
building “pending the inspection report
from an independent inspection company”.
One-year warrantee inspection:
This inspection is performed to document
the condition of your home prior to the
end of the builder’s one-year warrantee.
The inspection process is identical to
the final inspection using the same
reporting process. This inspection
should be scheduled around ten to eleven
months after close of escrow on your new
home.
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Out of State Home Buyers.
Call
Us Toll Free 1-866-585-7821
API provides full
inspections for out of state buyers that are not able to be present at the time
of inspection. API will contact you be phone after
the inspection and the report will be emailed the evening of the inspection. Digital
photographs of deficiencies and areas of concern are always included with our
reports. Upon request API will
return to the home after the problems are corrected so you can be confident
everything has been resolved.*
*Additional
fees may apply for follow up inspections depending on location of property
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