New South Wales

Is your house cracking up?

Is your house cracking up? A long, spidery vein is inching its way across the dining room wall. It seems to be spreading even as you stare at it! You’re sure it wasn’t there yesterday! So what does this mean and how can it be fixed? Don’t...
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The first signs that a home could have rotten or sinking stumps

If you are buying your dream home or investment property, it should be remembered that if the property is showing signs of stump damage, it is important to get a professional building consultant to have a look at your property.  A house may appear q...
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Is Your Smoke Alarm Up To Scratch

Fires can spread rapidly (in less than five minutes) through your house, according to findings from a Fire & Rescue NSW report. Interesting also is that homeowners are encouraged to look at how many fire alarms in their house to cover all potenti...
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Meth testing - the new norm for prudent home buyers

The New Norm? Including Meth checks in Pre-Purchase Building Inspections For home buyers there is nothing unusual about organising a Pre-Purchase Building Inspection on a potential property purchase. For smart buyers, a Pre-Purchase Building Inspe...
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What Victoria’s New Tenancy Laws Mean For Landlords

Victoria’s new tenancy laws mean that landlords need to pay extra attention to basic standards, especially relating to health and safety. These include (but are not limited to) providing functioning heaters, stoves and even deadlocks. Furthermore, ...
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Asbestos-Caused Cancer Trends Up

Asbestos-caused cancers are trending up, according to recent data from 2017. The grim facts from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare: 710 Australians were diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2016 – a cancer caused by exposure to asbesto...
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What is Caveat Emptor?

Increasingly property buyers are aware of their responsibility to discover building defects before sale – this is known as the Latin principle Caveat Emptor or ‘buyer beware’. The full quotation is ‘caveat emptor, qui ignorare no...
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Depreciation - A Most Valuable Deduction

Looking to claim? For property owners, depreciation is the gift that keeps on giving and another reason to talk with the professionals at Jim’s Building Inspections. To wit, investors deduct the amount of income-producing assets in decline over the...
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Termite Damage Is Leading Factor When Buying Queensland Homes

Are you buying a home or investment property in Queensland? Amongst the important things to consider is the termite and borer status of your intended property. It is recommended that you should always have both a pre-purchase building inspection a...
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Beware Of Unqualified Building Inspections

How to avoid unqualified building inspections? In a Fairfax article, Chris Dyce, president of the Australian Society of Building Consultants, says go with experienced building inspectors. Make sure they’ve work experience in the industry and don’...
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