Acceptance, what particularities should be noted?

Hi everyone,

next Tuesday we have the handover scheduled: We are already moving around the house a lot, have already put up some notes on the walls indicating where there is still work to be done.

Tomorrow I am doing a preliminary inspection with our expert and next Tuesday he will of course be there.

So far, apart from my discussion with the general contractor regarding the still missing Venetian blinds (the plasterers are currently applying the fine plaster, so I see a good chance that the discussion will fizzle out) there are only two major points and a lot of small stuff, like tiles still missing here and a stain on the wall there.

As I said: the expert will be there and the standard checklists are of course also at hand!

But the question to the group: have you noticed any problems during or after the handover that were not listed on any checklist? For example, a colleague had the roller shutter boxes sagging, however that’s supposed to happen.

Thanks and best regards,

Andreas

Yes, for example, missing ventilation in the utility room & storage room. At some point, mold developed in the storage room. It was fixed (wall drilled).

Please open _all_ windows and close them again. In our case, the terrace door was not properly adjusted. Check _all_ sockets and light switches to see if they are working.

Regards

*diligently taking notes* The electricians are already hard at work, they already have a long list from me

best regards,

Andreas

Are the windows clean so that scratches/inclusions can be seen? Or already checked?

You have to consider which type of defects you want to report. You can complain about everything from individual small pimples on the q3 plaster to an already moldy basement. You should just look at what you really want to present. Of course, all real technical defects are completely out of the question. But if you start to complain about a single pimple in the wall, it can quickly end in nitpicking (it’s about individual small cosmetic problems that anyone can fix themselves in 5 minutes and not about hundreds of cosmetic defects because they botched it).

- In any case, you should test all movable objects (windows, doors, shutters, etc.). You should check whether the tiles are level or if there are height differences (1-2mm is tolerance between 1 tile). You can notice height differences especially well with a vacuum cleaner when the large wide nozzle gets stuck somewhere (so another reason to clean ^^).
- Window panes are a problem. If you clean them, they might say in the worst case that you caused the scratch yourself. If you don’t clean, you don’t see the damage. Best to clarify that. In our case, a cleaning company cleaned the panes for the acceptance.
- Check the stairs for visual defects! Especially if the stairs have been in for a few weeks, there might already be one or the other dent. The stairs are one of the objects that stay in the house the longest, as there is never a reason to change them. They should be really tip-top at handover.
- Pro tip ^^: let ALL water pipes in the house run thoroughly. Of course also the drains, or rather it’s actually about them. Also, 100 liters or more through the shower, bathtub, etc... If anything is leaking and it runs through the socket in the kitchen, you have your significant defect before acceptance. Also check if the water heats up.

And the most important thing: stay calm and relaxed during the handover. If you have an expert with you, let him do it if necessary. The more “ridiculous” the defects become (small cosmetic issues), the better the company was and the more likely you have a nice house. If real defects exist (leaks are nonsense, after all) the scratches suddenly don’t matter anymore.