After enough inspections across the Gold Coast, Brisbane and Northern NSW, patterns emerge. These are the findings that appear again and again in South-East Queensland homes — and knowing them helps you read any property with sharper eyes.

The usual suspects

  • Ageing wet areas — showers and ensuites from the 1990s and 2000s are a constant source of elevated moisture readings
  • Drainage directing water towards the house — garden beds, paving and downpipes discharging against walls
  • Termite-conducive conditions — timber-to-soil contact, stored timber under or against the home, bridged slab edges
  • Roof maintenance items — cracked tiles, deteriorated pointing, corroded fixings on coastal homes
  • Subfloor ventilation restricted by landscaping built up over vents
  • Safety items — missing balustrades and loose decking

Common does not mean trivial

Most of these start as minor, inexpensive maintenance items. Left for years, the same items mature into major defects: decayed floor framing, concealed termite damage, water-affected walls. The value of an inspection — whether pre-purchase or annual — is catching them at the cheap end of that curve.

The numbers back this up. Across 50 of CYTE's own building and pest inspections spanning the Gold Coast, Brisbane fringe and Northern NSW, 39 properties (about 78%) had at least one major defect at the time of inspection, and 41 (about 82%) had at least one serious safety hazard — most commonly loose balustrades, inadequate fall-height protection or electrical items outside safe condition. These are not rare exceptions; they are the norm across the housing stock this list is drawn from.

Every finding in a CYTE report is photographed and explained in plain English, classified in line with AS 4349.1 and AS 4349.3, so you know what needs a tradesperson this month and what simply needs watching.

For more detail on the issues above, see our guides to subfloor ventilation and site drainage and stormwater, and our article on reducing termite risk. The FAQs cover more common questions.

A combined building and pest inspection records every finding in a same-day written report. Call 0431 114 815 to book.