Not sure what to look at on site?Stage checklists
I want to check the work before I pay the next stage.
- 1 Land
- 2 Design
- 3 Site & slab
- 4 Frame
- 5 Fixing
- 6 Handover
- 7 Living
Constructor
New book
Building Without Regret is out 30 November in softcover, with a free digital edition.Out 30 Nov.
See the book →
For Australians building a new home
Know what to check before you pay the next stage.
Plain-English guides and stage-by-stage inspection checklists, so you can spot problems while they're still cheap to fix. From Anthony Painter, a Brisbane builder and waterproofer with 26 years on residential sites, independent of any builder.
335free guides
25checklists
2,500+individual checks
Start here: what's going on for you?↓
We're looking at landFree C1 checklist, then what the house will cost
We're choosing a builderQuestions to ask every builder, and plan the cost
We're building nowPick your stage: what to check before you pay
Something on site doesn't look rightFree NCR Form, and the forms to put it in writing
We're worried the money won't stretchThe four money tools, one for each point in the build
We've just got the keysHandover, the defects period and the maintenance calendar
Free guide: design and contract in five steps · Plan the cost (C24)
See C4 Asking the Right QuestionsBuying an existing home? See C21 Pre-Purchase Inspection.
Where are you in your build?
Pick your stage. You'll get the checklists for it, what to check before you pay, and the guides worth reading now.
Land & planning
Before you buy a block or sign anything.
What goes wrong hereMost expensive mistakes are locked in here, months before anything is built.
Stop and check before you payBefore you buy or pay a deposit: check the site for slope, soil, flooding, bushfire rating and easements.
Checklists for this stage
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- C21: The Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist (know what your inspector checks, and what the report really means)Checklists
- C1 Before Buying Land Checklist: What to Check Before You SignQuality control
- Making Sense of Your Soil Test: Site Classes ExplainedDesign
- Will This Development Make Money? C26 Development FeasibilityChecklists
- What Should the House You Want Cost to Build? C27 Build Cost EstimatorChecklists
- Building on a Sloping Block: Costs, Designs and What to CheckBefore Construction
Related topics
Design & contract
Plans, inclusions and the contract.
What goes wrong hereWhat you settle now decides what you can argue about later.
Stop and check before you payBefore you sign the PSA or contract: know what the PSA buys, and check every allowance and inclusion.
Checklists for this stage
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- C13A Waterproofing Design Checklist: Get It Right Before the Membrane Goes OnChecklists
- The Preliminary Service Agreement (PSA): A Quick OverviewBefore Construction
- Rethinking Australian Housing: Better Than a Standard Project HomeOpinion
- Thermal Mass and Your New Home: What You Need to KnowDesign
- Insulation for Your New Home: What You Need to Know to Improve Comfort and Reduce Energy CostsEnergy Efficiency
- Your Home Orientation: The Key to Comfort and Energy Efficiency in AustraliaDesign
Site & slab
Site works, footings and the slab. This is the stage to slow down.
What goes wrong hereProblems here get buried in concrete.
Stop and check before you payBefore the slab pour and the base-stage payment: check set-out, reo, cover, termite protection and plumbing.
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- C19 Periodic Safety Inspection Checklist: A Builder's Guide to SafetyChecklists
- C6 Post-Pour Concrete Slab Inspection Checklist: Your Essential GuideChecklists
- C5 Pre-Pour Slab Inspection Checklist for HomeownersConcrete + Driveways
- C4A - The Ultimate Earthworks Inspection ChecklistQuality control
- C3 Sediment and Erosion ControlQuality control
- Concrete Foundations and Slabs: A Guide for New HomeownersConcrete + Driveways
Related topics
Frame & lock-up
Frame, roof, windows and rough-in.
What goes wrong hereThis is the last chance to see inside the walls before they're closed up.
Stop and check before you payBefore the frame and enclosed-stage payments: check bracing, tie-downs, wraps, flashings and rough-in.
Checklists for this stage
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- C11 Enclosed Stage Checklist: An OverviewChecklists
- C10 Rough-In Stage Inspection Checklist: What to Check Before the Walls CloseChecklists
- C9: Your Guide to Quality Roofing: Tile Roof, Box Gutter, and Flashing Inspection ChecklistChecklists
- C8 Metal Roof, Box Gutter and Flashing Checklist: A Homeowner's GuideChecklists
- C7 - Timber Frame Stage Inspection Checklist: A Detailed Guide for Quality ManagementChecklists
- Brick Veneer Facades for Australian HomesBrickwork + Cladding
Related topics
Fixing & finishes
Waterproofing, tiling, joinery and paint. What you see every day for the next 20 years.
What goes wrong hereWaterproofing goes under the tiles within days, and leaks show up years later.
Stop and check before you payBefore the fixing-stage payment: check waterproofing before tiles go down, then tiling and paint.
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- C15: Your Ultimate Painting Inspection Checklist (from design to execution)Checklists
- C14 Ceramic TileChecklists
- C12 Fixing Stage Checklist: What to Inspect Before You Pay the Fixing ClaimChecklists
- C13B: Waterproofing Done Right: How to Avoid the #1 Building DefectChecklists
- A Guide to Ceramic Tiling: AS3958.1 Insights for HomeownersQuality control
- Painting Quality Assurance Records for Your New HomePaint + Plasterboard
Related topics
Handover
Practical completion and the final payment.
What goes wrong hereOnce you take the keys, getting things fixed gets harder.
Stop and check before you payBefore the final payment: inspect for defects, get them listed in writing, and collect every certificate.
Checklists for this stage
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- Will We Still Have Enough to Finish? C25 Build Money LedgerChecklists
- Stages of Building a House in Australia: What Happens and What to CheckDuring Construction
- C23: The Concrete Driveways and Paths ChecklistChecklists
- Quality Forms Starter Pack: 17 Forms for Checking Your Own BuildChecklists
- C17: The Handover Stage Checklist (pay safely, take your keys and protect your defects rights)Checklists
- C16 Practical Completion Inspection Checklist: Find Every Defect Before You Accept Your HomeChecklists
Related topics
Living in it
Your first year and beyond. The 12-month defects period starts at practical completion. Check your contract.
What goes wrong hereThe defects period runs out whether you've reported anything or not.
Stop and check before you payBefore the defects period ends: inspect again and report anything new to your builder in writing.
Checklists for this stage
Start here: this stage in five steps →
Guides for this stage
- Landscaping and Garden Design for Your New HomeLandscaping
- Concrete Slab Cracks: What's Normal, What's a Defect, and What to Do (QLD)Concrete + Driveways
- Understanding and Managing Condensation in BuildingsBefore Construction
- Will We Still Have Enough to Finish? C25 Build Money LedgerChecklists
- Stages of Building a House in Australia: What Happens and What to CheckDuring Construction
- Home Maintenance Calendar: A Month-by-Month Plan for Your New HomeMaintenance + Care
Related topics
The book · out 30 November
The whole build, in one book you can keep on the bench
For you if you're thinking about building and want the whole picture before you talk to builders.
Building Without Regret walks you through every stage of a new home, from the first sales meeting to your first year living in it. It's about preventing defects through knowledge, not finding them after they're built: what to check, what to ask, and when to push back, from 26 years on residential sites.
- Every stage, in the order you'll face it
- The PSA, contract and allowances explained
- What to inspect before each payment
- Handover, defects and your first year
From A$69.95Softcover, on sale 30 November
See the book
Get an email when it's on sale
One email when the book goes on sale. No newsletter.
Includes a free digital edition and 25% off The Complete Set of checklists. Scan the QR code inside to claim both.
What we make, and when you'd use it
Pick the problem you have. Each one opens the section that solves it.
Worried the money won't stretch?Money tools
I want to know what it'll cost, and that we'll have enough to finish.
- 1 Land
- 2 Design
- 3 Site & slab
- 4 Frame
- 5 Fixing
- 6 Handover
- 7 Living
Something's not right on site?Forms and records
I need to put a problem, question or variation in writing.
- 1 Land
- 2 Design
- 3 Site & slab
- 4 Frame
- 5 Fixing
- 6 Handover
- 7 Living
Want to understand the whole build first?The Field Manual
I like to read ahead, with drawings of what good looks like.
- 1 Land
- 2 Design
- 3 Site & slab
- 4 Frame
- 5 Fixing
- 6 Handover
- 7 Living
Want dates, not memories?Site Diary and maintenance
I want a record of every visit, then a plan once we move in.
- 1 Land
- 2 Design
- 3 Site & slab
- 4 Frame
- 5 Fixing
- 6 Handover
- 7 Living
Free, no card neededFree tools
I want the Build Planner, the NCR Form or CINS tags.
- 1 Land
- 2 Design
- 3 Site & slab
- 4 Frame
- 5 Fixing
- 6 Handover
- 7 Living
Follow along
A real build written up as it happens, and new guides every week.
Build diary · 54 posts
Follow the Project 1 build
A real build written up as it happens, from demolition and sheet piling to footings, with what went right and what didn't.
Read the diary →Latest from the blog
Free, plain-English guides from 26 years on residential building sites. New posts every week.
Will This Development Make Money? C26 Development Feasibility
Before you buy a development site, find out what it's worth to you: the profit, the margin, what could go wrong, and the most you can pay for the land.
What Should the House You Want Cost to Build? C27 Build Cost Estimator
Before you buy land, find out what the house you want should cost to build: priced element by element, with a likely range and where to save.
Home Warranty Insurance in Queensland: What It Covers
Home warranty insurance in Queensland comes from the QBCC and it's built into your contract price. Here's what it covers, how much it pays, the deadlines that catch people out, and what it won't do.
Post 54: The Basement Slab Is Down, and the Walls Begin
The basement raft is poured in one hit, 228 cubic metres with a 50 metre boom pump and 15 concreters. The day after, we strip the forms, set out the grid on the slab and start getting ready for the Rediwall basement walls.
Browse by topic
Before Construction 128Design 63Quality control 63PROJECT 1 54Materials 34During Construction 24Energy Efficiency 22Planning & Organisation 16Contract Administration 13After Construction 13Concrete + Driveways 13Maintenance + Care 12Plumbing + Drainage 9Landscaping 8Legal 5What Is? 5Brickwork + Cladding 5Paint + Plasterboard 4
Unlock the members-only resources
Join free for trade guides, downloads and the free C1 checklist. No spam.