Yes. We are fully insured in both professional indemnity insurance and public liability insurance.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Jeff Manwaring, the owner of Uncover Building & Pest Inspections, is the only building inspector. This is how we can assure you our inspection will be thorough and complete every time.
We provide property inspection services throughout the Hunter Valley and Central Coast regions including Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland and surrounding areas.
To check if we service your area, click on ‘Get A Quote’ and our postcode search screen will appear to make sure we service your area before you continue.
Yes, Jeff Manwaring is available via phone to discuss any items of concern.
Please call 0414 271 275.
The length of time we are at the inspection site depends on many aspects; how old the property is, how accessible the property is, the size of the property etc.
Typically, the duration of a Pre Purchase Building and Pest Inspection is 2h. The report is completed on-site and issued (emailed) at the completion of the inspection.
We inspect Mondays – Fridays (limited weekend inspections are available upon request).
Pre Purchase Building and Pest Inspection reports are issued (emailed) at the completion of the inspection. All other reports are generally issued within 24h of the inspection.
Yes. Almost always with property purchases we compile a Pre-purchase Building Report with the Termite and Pest Inspection.
Yes. We would encourage you to have multiple new build inspections as you will get a better result, but you may only have issues about one aspect of a build.
For Example: you are an owner builder who needs help to ensure that the timber frame was installed correctly.
All inspections are dependent on what is being inspected. The bigger the property the bigger the cost. Typically, a pre purchase building + termite pest inspection will cost $450-$520.
View our inspection prices here or call us for a more accurate quote.
Yes. Should you want to attend the inspection you are most welcome.
No. We need to be provided access to the property, either by the real estate agent, current owner or tenant, but they do not need to stay during the entire inspection. We will lock the property and call upon completion.
Only you can answer that.
Even if a property needs some structural work, it can still be a good purchase but you might be able to negotiate a better price.
The property might have already been advertised at a cheaper price as the issues were already known.
The property could be in an ideal location where you have been waiting for a property to become available. We will identify the issues and then only you can decide to proceed or walk away.
Typically the purchaser of the property will arrange and pay for the building and pest inspection. In some instances vendors are doing pre-sale inspections and the seller will pay for the inspection and make the report available to the purchasers.
In an auction sale of a property, the purchaser should have a building and pest inspection completed prior to bidding at the auction.
Once the property is sold at auction the contracts become binding and you are buying the property regardless of its condition.
In a private treaty purchase typically the building and pest inspection is conducted after an offer has been accepted.
Some building inspectors use little to nothing except for their eyes as the inspection is a visual inspection.
The Australian standard indicates that equipment that is nondestructive can be used as part of a visual inspection.
Obviously, any equipment that can give the inspector more chance of finding issues with the building will create a better understanding of the property.
Uncover Building & Pest Inspections use:
- Termitrac (termite radar detection unit);
- Thermal Imaging Cameras, Moisture metres;
- Sounding and tapping instruments;
- High powered torches;
- Laser levels.
Learn more about our tools and technology.
Directly with the person who did the inspection, Jeff Manwaring
Your comprehensive report classifies items in accordance with the Australian Standards as “Major Defects” and “Minor Defects”.
Major defects are items that have to be repaired immediately as without rectification the building will continue to deteriorate. Typically, all Major defects relate to moisture/water which can be found using thermal imaging equipment.
Without water and moisture, a build has far fewer issues. The most common Major issues are Leaking showers, water ingress into building, poor drainage, and roof leaks.
Typically one in four houses have had some termite damage, especially when inspecting houses that are 30 plus years old.
The stats get better for more modern houses. Termite damage is not bad if repaired in time or only minor.
What is extremely important to understand is that once a house has had termites in it, the termites, although they’ve been poisoned and are no longer active, leave behind their pheromones. That lets other termite colonies know that there is something to eat there.
Most importantly, once a house has had termites, you need to be extremely vigilant in having regular termite inspections. One step better than just regular termite inspections is having a termite management system installed to help mitigate new termites attacking.
Termite activity is hard to spot and typically only trained pest inspectors may see them but common signs include mudding (termites are light sensitive and work in the dark, they block up any tiny crack or gaps with mud to keep light out). We are looking for cracks that have mud in them, termite working (mud tunnels that termites travel in to avoid the light), and hollow-sounding timber.
Part of a pre-purchase timber pest inspection is inspecting for termites, Borers and timber fungal decay.
In addition to pre-purchase building and pest inspections, Uncover provides handover inspections, new build inspections (also known as stage inspections), pre-sale inspections, and methamphetamine testing.