---
title: "Building and Pest Inspections: What the Report Covers, and What It Deliberately Doesn’t"
url: "https://agentfind.com.au/building-pest-inspection-what-report-covers/"
markdown_url: "https://agentfind.com.au/building-pest-inspection-what-report-covers.md"
type: "post"
date_published: "2026-09-16T04:45:46+00:00"
date_modified: "2026-09-16T10:30:40+00:00"
language: "en-US"
renderer_version: "3"
---

# Building and Pest Inspections: What the Report Covers, and What It Deliberately Doesn’t

## Summary

A building report covers accessible parts of the property — and generally excludes wiring, plumbing, drainage, gasfitting and pools. NSW Fair Trading also warns a vendor-supplied report "is not a substitute for your own independent report". Here's how to read one properly.

## Content

*By the AgentFind Editorial Team — Australian Property Professional Directory, Sydney*

 ![Timber roof beams and ceiling framing visible inside a roof space](https://agentfind.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/photo-1776604336398-decfacdc7c07-1024x577.jpg)The roof space is in scope. The wiring running through it generally is not.

**Most buyers read a building report as a verdict on the house. It is not. NSW Fair Trading describes a building inspection as covering “all accessible parts of the property” — interior, exterior, roof space and under-floor space — and states that reports “will not generally include: parts of the property that were not or could not be inspected… electrical wiring and smoke detectors, plumbing, drainage and gasfitting… swimming pools and pool equipment”. Everything in that exclusion list is expensive to fix and invisible from a walk-through. Knowing what the report does not cover is what turns it into a useful document.**

## Key Takeaways

**A building inspection is a visual assessment of accessible areas by a qualified person. It is not a warranty, it is not exhaustive, and the vendor’s copy is not a substitute for your own.**

- **Scope is “all accessible parts”** — interior, exterior, roof space, under-floor space — and visible signs of damage.
- **Common exclusions: electrical wiring and smoke detectors, plumbing, drainage and gasfitting, pools and pool equipment**, plus anything the inspector could not physically reach.
- **NSW Fair Trading recommends a separate pest inspection**, “especially if the property is located where termites are a known problem”, and an electrical inspection if the building report does not include one.
- **A vendor-supplied report “can help but it is not a substitute for your own independent report”.** Commission your own.

## Who Should Write It, and Why Insurance Matters

**NSW Fair Trading’s guidance is direct: “Always use a suitably qualified person such as a licensed builder, a surveyor or an architect”, and “ensure that the person you choose has adequate insurance cover, particularly for professional indemnity”.**

The professional indemnity point is the one buyers skip and later regret. A report is only worth what the author can be held to. If an inspector misses something they should reasonably have found, your recourse depends on them carrying cover — and a $350 report from an uninsured operator is a false economy against a $40,000 rectification bill.

Ask for the licence or registration number and confirmation of current professional indemnity cover before you book. A competent inspector will supply both without hesitation; the ones who hesitate are the answer to your question.

 Generally in scope Generally excluded Interior of the building Anything not or unable to be inspected Exterior of the building Electrical wiring and smoke detectors Roof space Plumbing, drainage and gasfitting Under-floor space Swimming pools and pool equipment Visible signs of damage Concealed structural elements behind linings

**Insider Insight:** Read the “areas not inspected” section of the report first, before the findings. That list is where the risk actually lives — a locked subfloor, a roof space with no access hatch, a wall of stored boxes, or a bathroom that could not be checked from below. A report with a short findings list and a long not-inspected list is not a clean report; it is an incomplete one. Ask the inspector whether return access can be arranged for the unchecked areas, and price the unknown into your offer if it cannot.

## The Three Reports Most Buyers Should Get

**For a freestanding house: a building inspection, a pest inspection, and — where the building report does not include it — an electrical inspection. For a strata apartment: a building and pest inspection of the lot plus a strata inspection, with a special-purpose report if you want common areas assessed.**

The pest inspection is separate for a reason. Termite activity is assessed differently from structural condition, and NSW Fair Trading specifically advises getting one “especially if the property is located where termites are a known problem”. A combined building-and-pest product is common and convenient, but confirm the pest component is performed by someone appropriately qualified rather than bundled as an afterthought.

For strata, the ordinary strata inspection reviews the scheme’s records. If you want the physical condition of common property assessed — the roof, the façade, the podium, the lifts — NSW Fair Trading notes you should request a “special-purpose” report. That is the step almost nobody takes, and it is the one that would surface an approaching special levy.

 ![Wooden beams supporting a roof structure](https://agentfind.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/photo-1785267971017-7ce530139ecc-1024x683.jpg)An inspector reports what is visible. Concealed framing behind linings stays concealed.

## Timing: Before the Hammer, or Not at All

**At auction there is no cooling-off period, and the sale is not subject to a building and pest inspection. So the inspection has to happen before you bid, at your cost, on a property you may not win.**

That is genuinely unfair and it is also the rule. Buyers attending three auctions can spend a four-figure sum on reports for houses they do not buy. Two ways to manage it: inspect only when you are seriously committed to bidding at a price you have already set, and ask the inspector whether they offer a reduced-fee verbal or summary assessment for auction buyers, which some do.

Buying by private treaty changes the calculation entirely, because an offer can be made subject to a satisfactory building and pest inspection, and in New South Wales a cooling-off period applies to private treaty sales. If you are risk-averse about building condition, that is an argument for choosing your purchase method, not just your property.

FEATURED CASE STUDY

## The Clean Report With the Long Second Page

**A buyer received a building report on a 1970s brick-veneer house that identified only minor issues — some cracked render, a sticking door, guttering due for replacement.** She read the findings, was reassured, and exchanged.

The section headed “areas not inspected” ran to eleven lines: the subfloor was not accessible because the access hatch was obstructed, and roughly a third of the roof space could not be entered due to stored items.

Eight months later, replacing carpet exposed two rotted bearers and evidence of prior termite treatment beneath the rear of the house. The repair came to about $34,000, and neither issue was something the inspector had failed to report — they were in the part he had said he could not see.

A follow-up inspection after clearing the hatch would have cost a couple of hundred dollars. The findings list was clean because the inspection was partial. *This is an illustrative scenario built from the typical pattern above, not a specific client file.*

[Search Buyer’s Agents](https://agentfind.com.au/listings/?_listing_type=buyers-agent)

## How to Actually Use the Report

**Read the exclusions first, then the findings, then call the inspector. A ten-minute phone conversation extracts more than the document contains, because inspectors write conservatively and speak plainly.**

The questions worth asking: which of these items would you fix in the first year, and which can wait; what did you see that you could not confirm; if this were your purchase, what would you get a specialist to look at; and is there anything that would make you walk away. Most inspectors will answer all four honestly if asked directly, and none of those answers appear in the written report.

Then use the findings as a negotiating instrument rather than a pass or fail. A quantified defect — a quote for a re-roof, a plumber’s assessment of the drainage — is a price adjustment argument. An unquantified worry is not.

## Frequently Asked Questions

 ➕ What does a building inspection cover?

NSW Fair Trading describes it as covering all accessible parts of the property — the interior, exterior, roof space and under-floor space — along with visible signs of damage. ➕ What is excluded from a building inspection report?

Reports will not generally include parts of the property that were not or could not be inspected, electrical wiring and smoke detectors, plumbing, drainage and gasfitting, or swimming pools and pool equipment. Read the “areas not inspected” list carefully. ➕ Do I need a separate pest inspection?

NSW Fair Trading advises getting a pest inspection as well, especially where the property is located in an area where termites are a known problem. Combined building-and-pest products are common; confirm the pest component is performed by someone appropriately qualified. ➕ Can I rely on the report the agent gives me?

NSW Fair Trading states a pre-sale report supplied by the vendor “can help but it is not a substitute for your own independent report”. Commission your own from someone you engaged. ➕ Who should carry out the inspection?

A suitably qualified person such as a licensed builder, a surveyor or an architect. NSW Fair Trading also advises ensuring the person has adequate insurance cover, particularly professional indemnity — ask for the licence number and confirmation of cover before booking. ➕ Do I need an inspection before bidding at auction?

Yes, if you want one at all. There is no cooling-off period on an auction purchase and the sale is not subject to a building and pest inspection, so any inspection has to be done beforehand and at your own cost. ➕ What inspection should I get on a strata apartment?

A building and pest inspection of the lot plus a strata inspection of the scheme’s records. If you want the physical condition of common property assessed, NSW Fair Trading notes you should request a “special-purpose” report. ➕ Can I use the report to negotiate the price?

Yes, if the defect is quantified. A written quote for the repair is a price-adjustment argument; a general concern is not. Where a purchase is by private treaty, an offer can also be made subject to a satisfactory inspection.

## Check the Reviews Before You Pick Up the Phone

Buyer’s agents commission dozens of these reports a year and know which inspectors write honest ones. Every professional listed on AgentFind shows their verified Google rating and review count on their profile, pulled from their own Google Business Profile rather than written for them.

Verified ratings across the AgentFind directory

4.6/ 5

Average Google rating
across rated listings

54,000+

Google reviews behind
the listed professionals

262

Listings rated
4.5 stars or higher

433

Property professionals
listed nationally

Ratings and review counts are sourced from each firm’s public Google Business Profile and refreshed periodically; 341 of 433 listings currently carry a Google rating. AgentFind does not write, edit or solicit these reviews.

**Had a report miss something?** Tell us in the comments what it was and whether it was in the exclusions. Buyers booking an inspection this week will read that section more carefully because of it.

**About AgentFind**
AgentFind is an Australian directory of property professionals — selling agents, buyer’s agents, mortgage brokers, conveyancers and strata managers — searchable by location and speciality. Listings are not exclusive by area, so more than one professional can appear in the same suburb and you see the full field rather than a single paid name. Enquiries go directly to the professional you contact, and AgentFind takes no commission on any resulting sale.

Get Someone Who Reads These Every Week

A buyer’s agent will tell you which findings matter and which are noise. A conveyancer will make sure the contract lets you act on them.

[Search Buyer’s Agents](https://agentfind.com.au/listings/?_listing_type=buyers-agent)
 [Search Conveyancers](https://agentfind.com.au/listings/?_listing_type=conveyancer)

Open any professional’s profile and choose Bookmark to add them to your shortlist — you’ll be asked to sign in first, then your saved professionals appear on your Bookmarks page.

Related reading: [auction vs private treaty](https://agentfind.com.au/auction-vs-private-treaty-australia/), [reading a strata report before you buy](https://agentfind.com.au/special-levies-capital-works-funds-strata/) and [what pre-approval actually guarantees](https://agentfind.com.au/home-loan-pre-approval-what-it-guarantees/).

Important — currency and verification notice

**This article is general information only and was current at the date of publication shown above. It is not legal, financial, taxation or building advice, and it does not take your circumstances into account.**

Legislation, regulations, inspection standards, cooling-off rules and licensing requirements change frequently and differ between states and territories. Before acting on anything in this article you must independently verify the current position that applies to your property and your state or territory — including the relevant property, building, strata and consumer legislation; the cooling-off and contract rules where you are buying; the jurisdiction, procedures and time limits of the applicable tribunal (for example NCAT in New South Wales or VCAT in Victoria); the content and currency of any certificate you intend to rely on, such as a section 184 or section 108 certificate; and the current status of any building defect, combustible cladding or remediation scheme affecting the building.

AgentFind is a directory service. We do not provide legal, financial, building or strata advice and we accept no responsibility for decisions made in reliance on this article. Obtain advice from a qualified professional — a solicitor, licensed conveyancer, licensed builder or qualified inspector, accountant, licensed mortgage broker or licensed strata manager as appropriate — and confirm current requirements with the relevant government authority or regulator before committing to a transaction or a course of action.

*Sources: [NSW Government — Pre-purchase inspection reports when buying a home](https://www.nsw.gov.au/housing-and-construction/buying-and-selling-property/buying-property-nsw/inspecting-a-property/inspection-reports); [NSW Government — Inspecting a home before buying](https://www.nsw.gov.au/housing-and-construction/buying-and-selling-property/buying-property-nsw/inspecting-a-property); [NSW Government — Buying a strata property](https://www.nsw.gov.au/housing-and-construction/strata/buying-a-strata-property); [Moneysmart (ASIC) — Buying a house](https://moneysmart.gov.au/home-loans/buying-a-house).*

## Classification

- **Category:** Buyers Agents, Tips

## Images

![](https://agentfind.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/photo-1776604336398-decfacdc7c07.jpg)