Existing Building Inspections, Engineer-Led from a Standard Inspection Price
For homeowners, buyers, sellers, strata committees, landlords and investors. One thorough inspection of your existing property, conducted by a Chartered Engineer, with the option to escalate to a formal engineering or dispute-ready report at any time.
Existing Buildings Are Where Most Inspections Happen — and Where Most Inspectors Fall Short
Whether you are buying, selling, sitting on a strata committee, or living with a crack you cannot explain, an existing building inspection is the most common service in this industry — and the one most often delivered by a Licensed Builder rather than an engineer.
A Licensed Builder can tell you what they see. They cannot tell you why a crack formed, how serious it is, or what it will cost to fix. BINM starts every existing building inspection with a Chartered Engineer, priced the same as a standard market inspection. If something more is found, you do not pay for a second visit — we escalate the same inspection data to a formal engineering or VCAT-ready expert report.
One inspection. Every pathway covered. No second fee.
One Core Service. Every Pathway Covered.
General Building Inspection (Engineer-Led)
A market-priced inspection that looks the same as a standard report to the naked eye — same scope, same timeframe, same price range — but delivered by a Chartered Engineer rather than a Licensed Builder. If nothing structural is found, you get a clear, plain-English report. If something is found, your inspector already has the qualifications to take it further, on the spot.
Existing Buildings Cover Four Distinct Needs
Whatever your reason for inspecting, the same Chartered Engineer standard applies.
Pre-Purchase and Pre-Sale
Buying or selling an existing home, apartment, or investment property. Engineer-led pre-purchase inspections give you negotiating leverage and certainty before you commit. Pre-sale inspections let you address issues — or price for them — before they cost you the sale.
Strata and Body Corporate
Common property inspections, building envelope assessments, balcony and balustrade compliance checks, and maintenance priority reports for owners corporations and strata committees making capital works decisions.
Defect and Movement Investigations
Targeted investigation of cracking, water ingress, balcony movement, or retaining wall concerns. We identify causation, not just the symptom — and document severity in a way that supports insurance claims or rectification decisions.
Engineering and Dispute Support
When a defect becomes a dispute — with a builder, a vendor, or an insurer — your inspection data is already in the right format to escalate to a formal structural engineering opinion or a VCAT-compliant expert report.
Tiered Upgrades and Add-Ons
Every existing building inspection can be extended with the following, individually or combined.
Drone roof video and images — for roofs that are inaccessible, steep, or hold safety risk to inspect on foot.
Floor level survey and contour map — establishes a movement baseline, critical for ongoing monitoring or dispute evidence.
Targeted investigations — cracking, water ingress, balcony movement, retaining wall assessment.
Engineering-level report — deeper causation and risk analysis beyond the standard report.
Drawing review — architectural and structural plan review against as-built condition.
VCAT-compliant expert report — if a dispute arises, your data is escalation-ready.
If a Defect Is Found, What Happens Next
Scope
A clear, itemised scope describing exactly what needs to be fixed and why.
Costing
Engineer-prepared estimates so you know what you are negotiating or budgeting for.
Procurement
Help sourcing and briefing the right trade or contractor for the rectification.
Project Management
Oversight through the rectification process, so the fix matches the recommendation.
Verification
A follow-up inspection to confirm the rectification was completed to standard.
Inspect. Report. Protect.
Three steps from booking to a report you can act on.
Inspect
Book online or call 1800 796 776. Tell us about your property and your reason for inspecting — purchase, sale, strata, or a specific concern. A Chartered Engineer is matched to your job with same-week availability.
Report
One thorough site visit. All data, photos, measurements, and observations are captured to a standard that supports any report level, now or later.
Protect
Receive your report. If a structural issue is identified, upgrade to an engineering or VCAT-ready expert report — no second site visit required.
Existing Building Inspection Pricing
Pricing depends on property size, type, and the services selected. All pricing confirmed before booking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about existing building inspections.
A General Building Inspection is a visual assessment delivered by a Chartered Engineer — priced and scoped like a standard inspection. An Engineering-Level Report goes further: it analyses causation, assesses structural behaviour, and provides a formal engineering opinion. Because BINM starts with an engineer, the data from your General Building Inspection can be upgraded to an Engineering-Level Report without a second site visit.
No. The same Chartered Engineers conduct strata and body corporate inspections, including common property, building envelope, and balcony compliance assessments. The scope changes; the qualification does not.
Yes. Targeted investigations are available as a standalone service for cracking, water ingress, balcony movement, or retaining wall concerns, without requiring a full pre-purchase style inspection.
If your inspection was conducted by BINM, yes. Because every inspection starts at engineer level, your data can be escalated to a VCAT-compliant expert report without a return visit. Standard Licensed Builder inspection reports generally cannot be escalated this way.
We can provide a rectification scope of works, cost estimates, procurement support to find the right contractor, project management through the works, and a post-rectification verification inspection to confirm the fix meets standard.
Same-week availability is standard. Call 1800 796 776 or book online and we will confirm your inspection time within a few hours.