Loading...
Loading...
Carlton’s terraces, older walk-up apartments and balcony-heavy builds can hide small faults—like moisture at party walls, cracked render and loose balustrades—that quickly become expensive repairs.
Answer a few quick questions to receive your personalised quote for Carlton
Complete this step to continue
Our comprehensive service includes everything you need to make an informed decision about your property.
We check bathrooms, laundries and kitchens for early signs of leaks—swollen cabinetry, lifted flooring edges, deteriorated silicone, staining and musty odours. These minor indicators often point to failing waterproofing or plumbing seepage that can damage subfloors and walls if ignored.
We identify hairline cracks versus more concerning patterns around doorways, windows and cornices, and note sticking doors or misaligned frames. In Carlton’s older builds and renovated layouts, small movement clues help you plan monitoring or targeted repairs before cracks widen.
We look for loose balustrades, cracked tiles, damaged grout, poor falls to drains, and deteriorated junction seals. These are common ‘small’ defects that can allow water into slab edges or framing and may also present a safety risk.
We check for blocked or poorly connected downpipes, signs of overflow, and splashback staining at walls. In dense Carlton streetscapes with limited eaves and tight side access, minor drainage faults can quickly create damp at lower walls and courtyards.
We assess operation of doors and windows, latching, locks, hinges and visible sealing. Minor defects like binding sashes, failed weather seals or broken latches can signal moisture exposure, movement, or simply the need for timely maintenance to improve security and weather tightness.
We note peeling paint, bubbling, deteriorated render and failed sealants at joints and penetrations. These small surface issues often mark moisture entry points and can lead to larger repairs if the underlying cause (leak, drainage, ventilation) isn’t addressed early.
Discover why thousands of property buyers trust us with their most important investment.
Professional inspections with attention to every detail. Here's a glimpse of our work.
Inspection photo 1
Inspection photo 2
Inspection photo 3
Get Minor Property Defects as part of a comprehensive inspection package
Find answers to the most frequently asked questions about our inspection service.
Yes. Carlton has many older dwellings and walk-up apartments where age, renovations and tight boundary lines can hide small issues. Common minor defects include hairline cracking, sticking doors, deteriorated sealants, early damp staining and drainage overflow marks. These often look cosmetic at first, but they can be early warning signs of moisture entry, movement or maintenance gaps.
A Minor Property Defects inspection targets smaller issues that are easy to overlook and documents them clearly, with practical next steps. A full building inspection is broader and typically addresses major defects, structure and overall condition in more depth. If you’re buying, the best choice depends on the property type and your risk tolerance; we can help you select the right scope.
Where accessible and safe, yes. We look for loose balustrades, cracking, poor drainage falls, damaged grout and failed seals—common starting points for water ingress. For apartments, some balcony elements may be common property managed by owners corporations, but the condition still matters because defects can lead to repairs, levies or restrictions on use.
In Carlton, minor moisture-related defects often show up as bubbling paint, musty odours, swollen skirting or cabinetry, staining at the base of walls, and deteriorated silicone in showers and around sinks. Courtyards and party walls can limit ventilation and drying, so small leaks or drainage issues can linger. Early identification helps prevent mould, timber decay and larger waterproofing costs.
Yes. A minor defects report can act as a punch list before you renovate, helping you prioritise repairs that should happen first—like addressing moisture sources, correcting drainage, or fixing window/door sealing. That reduces the risk of building new finishes over an existing problem and gives your trades clearer direction on what to rectify and why.
Still have questions?
Get in TouchACE Building and Pest Inspections focuses on the small Carlton-specific issues—moisture clues, movement cracking and balcony/drainage faults—so you can act early. Call 0413 163 187.