Inspect your own house handover: 30 points to check before paying the final milestone

Allow half to a full day for the handover inspection, in daytime with good light. Bring a voltage tester screwdriver, a marble or ping-pong ball, a flashlight, a phone charger and sticky notes to mark problems. Photograph every point and compile a defect list for the contractor to sign

Water system (the most painful place to miss things)

• Turn on every faucet at once and check for pressure drops or unusually weak flow
• Hold water in basins/bathroom floors for 10–15 minutes; check drainage and leaks into the ceiling below
• Flush every toilet; check it drains fully with no seepage at the base
• Pour water on bathroom floors and check it all reaches the drain without pooling (correct floor slope)
• Open the inspection pit covers around the house; check the flow and for mortar blockages

Electrical system

• Test every outlet with a voltage tester or phone charger — every point must have power
• Switch every switch on and off; every light works, and each switch controls the right fixture
• Press the Test button on the RCD — it must cut power immediately; if not, that's serious
• Check the main panel: breakers labeled with the zones they control, wiring neat and not tangled

Floors, walls, ceilings, doors and windows

• Place a marble at several spots on the floor — if it keeps rolling hard in one direction, the floor is sloped
• Tap floor and wall tiles one by one — a hollow sound means incomplete mortar (note the spots to fix)
• Look along walls at an angle to the light for waves, crazing and patchy paint
• Open and close every door and window — smooth, no rubbing, and every one locks fully
• Check for leaks around frames and ceiling corners — yellow water stains are evidence of rain getting in

Outside the house

• Look for cracks in exterior walls, especially at column-beam corners; diagonal cracks need an engineer
• Check that the ground around the house slopes away from it, not toward it
• When it first rains after handover, walk through every room immediately — it's the best real-world test

Make two copies of the defect list signed by both parties with a clear fix-by date, then book a re-inspection before paying the final milestone. For a high-value house or if you're unsure, hire an independent engineer (find one under "Hire an engineer to inspect" on Bhoon Kharn) — a few thousand baht for eyes that see what we don't