After inspecting all stages of our house we found out that houspect never sent any of the inspection reports to our builder so none of the faults found by houspect were ever reported to the builder which makes all the money i paid for the inspections an absolute waste!! Houspect claims its my responsibility to send the reports but i was never told that at the beginning and was even told by houspect that they were communicating with my builder!! What a joke! You had one job, why would you not send the report to the builder? I think theyre the ones you should be sending it to before me! And if you are not sending it to them you should at least inform me!!!!

We used Houspect for every stage of our new build and it was the best money we could spend. They identified areas of concern we simply could not see, nor understand whether the builder's work complied with regulations. The reports were comprehensive and easy to understand, and were provided with quick turnaround times. If you are building make sure you use them for every stage, not just the final pre-handover inspection. If there is an issue with your build, it's best to know asap rather than at the 11th hour! These reports will also give you credibility with your builder.

Approximate cost: $2,000

Housepect gave us what we believed to be a full written report on an old property that we were purchasing. As it turned out, they reported nothing other than 'some' of what we had seen with our own eyes.

Housepect would only hand over the report AFTER full payment was made and I now completely understand why.

We received 5 very short pages of actual report on a house that is 80 years old with notes such as 'large crack in wall possibly from 1968 meckering earthquake.' The remaining pages in the 20+ page report were disclaimers and maintenance tips. In my opinion, a complete and utter waste of money!

Since our purchase we have discovered numerous items that were either incorrectly reported or completely missed. Here are just a few;

- they noted that the house has been re-wired, which we have since learned wasn't, then paid thousands of dollars to have re-wired.

- they noted that our fascia boards required painting but there was no damage. Some of our fascia boards are so badly damaged that they are rotten and falling off the side of the house and require complete replacement.

- The inspector somehow completely missed the fact that the sole major supporting post for the rear section of our roof was completely rotten and required immediate replacement so as to avoid losing the roof over our outdoor area and off the rear corner of the house!

To cap off our disappointing experience, Housepect also arranged our termite inspection (with a company they are linked to) who provided both inaccurate AND/OR absolutely no information whatsoever. They stated they could not access the roofspace - (despite two manholes inside property) and could not access the underfloor as they are not allowed to roll back unsecured vinyl flooring. Oh, and most importantly they also stated that they found no active (live termite) or old termite activity in the garden.

Only AFTER they received full payment for their report they supplied a whole lot of disclaimers supporting that their report wasn't worth the paper it was written on and their inspection was inconclusive.

Immediately following settlement we hired a reputable company to do a thorough termite inspection and within minutes he found live termite activity in the back yard and various spots where there was old activity and damage. He was absolutely disgusted with the report we had previously received and couldn't understand how such a company could still be in business. He was also able to gain access to the roofspace and underfloor and thankfully we had no termite damage or activity - sheer luck! He was an absolute pleasure to deal with and is a good, honest man who believes that his reputation is everything. I would highly recommend him to anyone.

As for the other two companies - I would steer clear and save $700!!

Oh, and in case you're wondering, I did complain in writing directly with the company on two occasions and didn't receive so much as an acknowledgment. Although, after you pay your bill you realise you dont have a leg to stand on anyway as they cover themselves with all their disclaimers that you only get to see AFTER you have parted with your hard earned money.

For about the same cost, I would choose to pay an electrician and a plumber for an hour to inspect that side of things and find a reputable termite inspector.

** PLEASE NOTE that I was pressured to change certain parts of this review due to this business threatening legal ramifications in December 2014 **

ALL COMMENTS ARE FACTUAL AND MADE BY A PAYING CUSTOMER OF THIS BUSINESS

Approximate cost: $700.00

Houspect inspected our new home after practical completion. Virtually no significant faults were noted other than those I brought to the inspectors attention myself. I had to do the list myself, and the builder ended up having to settle with me for approx $7,000 at the Building disputes tribunal. Management was totally unhelpful. The person I spoke to read the report and said it was good, even though he himself had never seen the property!!

Approximate cost: $550

Great service, a fantastic report which was superior to any I have seen before. So thorough and approachable! Recommended for certain, no doubts.

Approximate cost: $350-460

We hired Houspect to do the building report on the house we were buying. They were professional and efficient at all times. Did what they were hired to do quickly and gave us an easy to understand, detailed report. They were clear on what the report did and did not cover. They listed the condition of everything and let us know what was OK, what needed attention both now and in 12 months time. They also included a glossary of building terms which I found helpful not knowing much about these things as I do! They included a preferred supplier list of service providers who would offer a discount to all Houspect clients.