Quote:
Originally Posted by Selanne_200
The municipal inspections you refer to, they're usually the barebone minimum requirements. Basically the city wants to make sure the house isn't going to collapse and is built according to building code, but the actual workmanship and the materials they can careless
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That partially depends on the inspector, ultimately they can't fail you for poor quality work if it meets code requirements, but if an inspector chooses they can be very picky and some are on every site. Easy going inspectors will do a quick walk through and then go "yup, looks decent, pass". Others will analyze every inch of work "see the insulation in the back left corner of the attic, your 1/2 an inch to low, completely respray the attic and re-schedule". I loved having the tough inspectors, because no matter how hard they tried to find faults they couldn't. Generally, the higher the property values in an area are the tougher the inspections are, and custom homes always have the better inspectors. Having a good general contractor is the most important aspect of building a custom home, because they'll ensure the subs aren't using cheap material.
Adding to what I said in my prior post on the subject, housing developments are big business, and just like any big business they get cut some slack by government. Municipalities want the tax revenue that developing land brings in, and if their inspectors hold up projects and cause developers to lose money they'll do business in other cities. Obviously, cities won't allow that to happen. Knowledgeable people knew leaky condos would leak when they were being built, but structuring code the way government did catered to developers. The next common issue will be mold in basements, anyone building a custom home on this site, do yourself a favour and discuss insulating basement walls with spray foam or rigid board with your contractor.