Both scopes in one visit — building to AS 4349.1, timber pest to AS 4349.3. The fuller check, by a registered building contractor. Report within 24 hours.
Bedford sits just north of Inglewood without the same uniform character, and its housing is the more mixed and modest for it: interwar homes alongside post-war and 1950s and 60s brick, with a steady layer of subdivision and grouped dwellings filling the older lots. It is a more affordable, family-oriented pocket of the inner north, and a building and timber pest inspection here has to read whichever era, and whichever quality of build, it is put in front of.
The older Bedford homes are interwar and early post-war brick, read for the movement their shallow period footings allow and for the rising damp the pre-damp-course walls draw up. But a great deal of Bedford is 1950s and 60s stock, and that era brings asbestos to the front of the inspection. Homes of that period commonly contain it in the eaves and in fibro sheeting, behind wet-area tiles and in old fencing, and a visual inspection identifies and flags the suspect materials without disturbing them, which matters most to the many Bedford buyers who intend to renovate.
The mid-century construction carries the rest of its era's list. Concrete tile roofs from the 50s and 60s are now brittle with perished sarking, the hardwood roof framing beneath can show chemical delignification, steel-framed windows rust, and wiring and switchboards may predate safety switches. None of it is unusual, and all of it is what a buyer needs costed before they commit.
Subdivision is the other half of the Bedford story. Older lots have been split for grouped dwellings and rear battle-axe builds, and the newer homes among the old bring their own concerns: the build quality of a quick infill project, from wet-area waterproofing to roof-space finishing, and the boundary conditions the subdivision created, being retaining where levels change, drainage on a tight site, and access. Where the property is a recent build, the inspection shifts to that build quality rather than age.
Renovation and additions run through the older stock, as they do across the inner north, and each addition is read for how it was built, for the waterproofing of any retrofitted wet area, and for whether it was approved, because unapproved work passes to the buyer at settlement.
On the timber pest side, Bedford's established gardens, its ageing timber and the moisture held in older walls give subterranean termites a foothold. The subfloor is read for damp and ventilation. The perimeter is read for soil-to-timber contact and conducive conditions, and suspect timber by sounding, with movement detection where activity is suspected behind a wall. Termite management follows AS 3660.
Bedford is a mixed, practical, family suburb rather than a uniform character one, and the report earns its value by reading exactly what is in front of it, an ageing mid-century home with asbestos and an old roof, an interwar original, or a newer infill build with questions all its own.
We run the same two-scope visit across the area, including nearby Inglewood and Mount Lawley.
MISSING: phone number · Book online → · Flat $616 inc GST for both scopes, report within 24 hours.
A mix: interwar homes alongside post-war and 1950s and 60s brick, plus newer subdivision and grouped dwellings. Bedford is less uniform than Inglewood, so we read whichever era, and whichever quality of build, is in front of us.
In the 1950s and 60s stock, very likely. It turns up in eaves, fibro sheeting, behind wet-area tiles and in old fencing. We identify and flag suspect materials without disturbing them, which matters most to the many Bedford buyers who plan to renovate.
The roof and the services. Concrete tiles of the era are brittle with perished sarking and the roof timbers can show delignification. Steel-framed windows rust, and wiring and switchboards may predate safety switches. It is standard-of-the-era, and we cost it plainly.
The build quality and the boundary conditions. We read a quick infill build for wet-area waterproofing and roof-space finishing, and the site for retaining where levels change, drainage and access. Newer does not mean defect-free.
The focus shifts to build quality: waterproofing to AS 3740 and roof-space workmanship and articulation on the ground, and the finishing a fast build rushes. On a near-new home a pre-handover look while the builder is liable is worth as much as a pre-purchase one.
Often. Fifty and sixty-year-old tiles are brittle with perished sarking, and the hardwood framing can show chemical delignification, which reduces what it can carry. We read the roof closely and probe for it.
Yes. Established gardens, ageing timber and the moisture held in older walls give subterranean termites a foothold. We read the subfloor and perimeter for conducive conditions and sound suspect timber, with movement detection where needed. Termite management follows AS 3660.
The junctions and the approvals. We read each addition for structure and for the waterproofing of any retrofitted wet area, and flag work that looks unapproved so it can be checked against council records.
A flat $616 including GST for both scopes together, the same in every suburb. You have the written report, with photos, within 24 hours.
Yes. Whether it is an ageing mid-century home, an interwar original or a newer build, a clear report separates the significant issue, asbestos and a failing roof, or a waterproofing defect, from the cosmetic, giving you a concrete basis to renegotiate.
Buying in Bedford? A pre-purchase building inspection — building scope only, report within 24 hours — gives you the documented record before exchange.
Pre-purchase inspection →Our office is at Suite 55, 15 Labouchere Road, South Perth WA 6151 — on the Swan River foreshore near the Perth Zoo.
Tell us about the property and what you need. We'll come back to you with a firm quote and a time.
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