Promising the world and not delivering is a common pattern here. The frustration that follows leads many apartment buyers to inspect almost everything they buy, from a computer to the biggest purchase of their lives: an apartment.
There is no shortage of stories about contractors who promised big, put it in writing in the sale contract, handed the buyer a technical specification (or none at all), and then let all of it stay a dream that was never carried out, leaving the residents disappointed and frustrated.
A home inspection (bedek bayit) exists to catch exactly this: cases where there is no match between the contractor's commitments and what it actually built, and cases where construction defects turn up.
The law requires the contractor to stand behind the quality of the construction, the property, and its finish, but in plenty of cases that commitment stays words on paper and is never carried out. When defects surface only much later, the resident may not even know the contractor fell short.
He moves into the new apartment and only after a few years discovers a range of construction defects, from plumbing problems to wall cracks and sinking floor tiles.
An inspection of a new apartment can be carried out either before or after the date the resident takes possession. Done by certified professionals, it confirms to the new residents whether the contractor really met its commitments, whether the building is free of construction defects, and whether everything promised in the contract was actually carried out.
It checks how well the contractor lived up to what it put on paper, and gives you the confidence that you were not sold empty promises.
If you hired a home inspection company and the inspection turned up construction defects, the information it gathered and the report it submits are admissible in court, and they become the basis for a lawsuit against the contractor.
What a home inspection for a new apartment can reveal
- A mismatch between the contractor's commitments and the actual construction: a professional, thorough inspection carried out on or near the handover day gives the owner a precise answer to whether the contractor met everything it committed to.
- Construction defects that can cost the resident a great deal of money: construction defects is a broad term covering many kinds of problems in different fields, from plumbing to building materials and more. They are usually discovered only a few years after the resident has moved in and can be costly, so it is worth having an inspection to find out whether the new apartment has any.
The engineers of Arad Bedek Bayit, led by building engineer Ron Arad, whom courts appoint as their own expert on construction defects. The company has been inspecting apartments and buildings since 2001. Engineer Ron Arad · More about the company