Advantage Property Inspections. inc

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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

 

Davidson 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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