How is the price of a housing trade condition inspection determined?
You always consider the price when buying something, and a condition inspection in connection with a housing transaction is no exception. This is perfectly understandable: after all, nobody wants to pay for something that is useless.
Why are condition inspections so expensive? And what does the inspection entail? These are questions that customers often ask from me, and I’m happy to explain them to you here.
Three factors influence the pricing of a condition inspection in connection with a housing transaction
The cost of a condition inspection is determined in the same way for all of our customers. The price is influenced by three factors: the location of the site, the building’s age and the building type.
Detached houses are divided into three categories based on age: homes built before 1989, homes built between 1989 and 2009, and homes built in or after 2010. The older the home, the higher the price. It takes more time to inspect an older detached house because they are inherently more complex and require the opening of more structures due to structures posing a risk.
A condition inspection of an apartment in a terraced house costs less than in the case of other building types. We have determined a lower price to encourage people to have apartments in terraced houses inspected more often. In many cases, only a humidity survey is performed when selling an apartment in a terraced house, even though it is not sufficient to verify the condition of the terraced house.
The location of the site also affects the cost of the condition inspection. Prices are divided into 15 regions. In most cases, a region is the same as a province.
A condition inspection includes much more besides the site visit
In many cases, the customer believes that the price of the inspection only covers a site visit. This is usually the most visible part of the inspection, but there is much more to the inspection.
In practice, the price of a condition inspection includes everything that happens between the placing of the inspection order and the delivery of the report. An inspection involves plenty of initial preparation and communication with the customer, not to forget the final report. After-sales communication is also included in the price of the service. So, if you feel that the inspection report is unclear, you should contact the inspector who wrote the report directly. Their contact details can be found at the end of the report.
At Raksystems, the price of a condition inspection always includes the opening of structures in compliance with the guideline for building inspectors.
Condition inspections in compliance with the guideline for building inspectors
Raksystems always performs condition inspections in connection with housing transactions in compliance with the guideline for building inspectors, which is part of the Joint Policy for Condition Inspections in Connection with Housing Transactions (Asuntokaupan kuntotarkastuksen yhteinen toimintamalli). Published by the Ministry of the Environment, the guideline determines the course of the condition inspection, the processes, the transparency of pricing and materials to be sent to the customers before the inspection. The content of the agreement between the customer and the company is also specified in the guideline, so the customer can feel safe.
All our condition inspectors are committed to following the guideline. We train the inspectors before they start work and maintain their expertise during their careers.
I’m proud that we have fine-tuned the condition inspection process to such an extent. For you as the customer, this means that you will know right from the beginning of the process what the inspection will cost and what you will get with your money – which is how it should be.
