New Construction Home

A brand-new home in Lakeville, Blaine, Maple Grove, or anywhere along the metro's growing edges is not automatically a defect-free home. Builders work fast, trades hand off to one another, and the final walkthrough rarely catches everything. An independent inspection before you close puts an outside set of eyes on the work while the fixes are still the builder's responsibility, and an 11-month warranty inspection catches what the first Minnesota winter reveals.

Why a new home still needs an independent inspection

Even on a new build we routinely find missing or improper flashing, negative grading, attic ventilation shortcuts, plumbing and HVAC items left incomplete, and rushed finish work. The municipal inspector checks code compliance, not whether the house was built well for you. We work for you.

Timing: pre-closing and the 11-month warranty

The best time for the first inspection is before your final walkthrough, so any items land on the builder's punch list before you close. The second key moment is around month eleven, before the one-year warranty expires, when a full freeze-thaw cycle has surfaced settlement cracks, nail pops, and grading problems the builder should still fix.

Grading, drainage, and the first winter

Fresh grading settles, and downspout extensions are often left off at closing. How water moves away from a new foundation deserves a close look, because the most common new-construction surprise is a wet basement in the first spring thaw.

Workmanship in the systems behind the walls

The electrical panel and visible wiring, the furnace, AC, and ductwork, the water heater and plumbing, and the attic insulation and ventilation are worth a look, especially for the handoff gaps where one trade assumed another finished the work.

What a standard inspection does and does not cover

A standard new-construction inspection is a visual evaluation of the completed home and its built-in systems, with a photo-mapped report within 24 hours you can hand to your builder. It is not a code audit or an engineering review. Where something is concealed, it is worth noting.