It is important to realize that if you are building outside of the city limits there are no oversight inspections being made by any building authority.  That is not to say that the building codes do not apply in these unincorporated areas, they do.  The buyer will be on their own, however, to verify that the builder is following applicable codes and doing the quality of work expected.  It is amazing how many code violations are found, and how many liberties are taken, when no oversight authority is making inspections.  

Some builders hire independent inspectors to help with in-house quality control.  This is a step in the right direction; but, the independent inspector works for the builder (not the buyer) and has no authority to force the builder to correct any problems that the inspector points out.  The buyer is almost never privy to any of the inspector's findings and not only has no way of knowing what might have been found, but has no way of knowing if corrections were ever made.

Don't be lulled into a false sense of security even if your home is being built in an incorporated area.  Inspections by local municipal authorities, although not without value, are minimal in most cases.  These authorities are not particularly concerned that top quality work is being done or that the mechanical aspects of the construction are functional.

What Can the Buyer Do?

The buyer's best line of defense to assure that the home being built is up to par is to hire their own independent property inspector to monitor the construction process.    

Having an inspector working with you throughout the project will help you in two ways…

One;   Mistakes will be caught by the inspector that the builder may either not be aware of or will not care to correct once made.

Two;   Knowing that their work is being inspected along the way, the builder is likely to pay more attention to your project if for no other reason than to “keep you off his back”. Either way, you will end up with a better finished product.

Its my experience that the cost of ongoing inspection is usually less than the cost of the corrections you may end up making down the road when you try to sell the home.  Better to have your own inspector working for you today than another buyer’s inspector working against you tomorrow.