Home Buying Document Checklist
Have a prompt list to work through with whoever is handling the transaction, so documents are found before they are asked for rather than afterwards.
Moving and buying · MB-04
A free printable new build snagging list — room, item, fault, date reported, developer response, date fixed and signed off, on one running sheet.
One page. Choose your paper size — both versions are laid out identically, so neither one gets shrunk to fit.
Print it and write on it
Fill it in type and save
The fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.
Keep every fault in a new build on one dated sheet, so the record of what was reported and when exists in your handwriting rather than in a builder's inbox.
Anyone taking handover of a new build or a newly converted property, and anyone chasing a developer months after moving in.
One page, top to bottom:
Printed under the title: Every fault found in a new build, from the first walk-round to sign-off, with the dates that turn a complaint into a record.
Schemes and timescales differ. What a developer has to put right, how long you have to report it and what any warranty covers differ by country and by scheme. This sheet records what you found and what happened next — check the terms that actually apply to your purchase, and report faults the way those terms require.
Write-on lines: Plot / address · Developer · Handover date
Table, 13 rows: Room · Item · What is wrong · Reported · Developer response · Fixed · Signed off
That depends entirely on your contract, your country and the warranty or scheme the property is registered under — they differ a great deal. Read the terms that apply to your purchase and report faults the way those terms require.
In everyday use, a defect in finish or workmanship rather than a design fault: doors that catch, paint runs, missing seals, taps that drip. Where the line falls for your property is set by your own contract and warranty.
Have a prompt list to work through with whoever is handling the transaction, so documents are found before they are asked for rather than afterwards.
Remember who did what, what it cost, and who was worth calling back — and have a dated record if a dispute ever starts.
Capture the things you need to know about a new property while you are still paying attention, rather than at two in the morning during a leak.
The same subject, with a version you can fill in on screen.
Which photo shows which room, at which stage, from which side.
Every item installed, with make, model, serial number and where it went.
The plot, base price and the date choices must be in.
The development, plot, developer contact and reservation fee paid.
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