Guide 01 · Homebuyers
The Complete VP Defect Checklist: What to Inspect When You Collect Your Keys
Vacant possession — the day you finally collect your keys — feels like a finish line. In reality, it's the starting gun for the most important inspection window you'll ever have. Every defect you identify and report now sits squarely on the developer's account. Every defect you miss becomes your problem, on your budget, later.
After 20,000+ inspections, here's the checklist our own inspectors work through — adapted for homeowners doing a first pass themselves.
Before you go
- Bring: your VP letter, IC, a phone with a good camera, masking tape or sticky notes to mark defects, a marble or golf ball (for floor falls), and a phone charger (to test every power point).
- Go in daylight. Natural light reveals surface defects that ceiling lights hide.
- Allow 2–3 hours minimum. A rushed check is barely better than no check.
Floors
Tap every tile — yes, every one — with a coin, your knuckle, or a tapping rod. A hollow, drum-like sound means the tile isn't fully bonded and will crack or pop later. Mark each hollow tile with tape. Check for lippage (uneven tile edges you can feel underfoot), chips, cracks, and stain patches. In one condo unit, our team logged hollow tiles as part of a 246-defect report — it's the single most common defect category we find.
Walls & ceilings
Stand at an angle to each wall and look along it — undulations, patchy paintwork, and trowel marks show up in raking light. Look for cracks (note their width and direction), damp patches, and stains at ceiling corners, especially below bathrooms and at party walls.
Doors & windows
Open and close every single one. Check for jamming, misalignment, missing screws and stoppers, damaged frames, and gaps in sealant. Lock and unlock every lock. Sliding doors should glide, not grind.
Wet areas — the ponding test
Bathrooms, balconies, and yards must drain completely. Pour a bucket of water on the floor and watch: water should run to the floor trap within a minute or two, leaving no standing pools. Ponding means the floor falls were built wrong — and trapped water eventually means seepage into the unit below, or yours.
Run every tap for a few minutes, then open the vanity cabinet and check the pipes underneath with your hand. Slow concealed leaks are invisible on a quick look — and they destroy cabinetry and walls within months.
Electrical & fittings
Test every power point with your charger. Flip every switch. Check that fans, lights, and doorbells work, and that switch plates sit flush. Check sanitary ware for cracks and stable mounting — a loose toilet or basin is a defect, not a quirk.
Document everything
Photograph each defect close-up and wide (so the location is clear), list them in writing, and submit the defect form to the developer — keep a copy and get an acknowledgement. Written, dated evidence is what turns a complaint into a claim.
- VP day starts your 24-month Defect Liability Period — the earlier you report, the stronger your position.
- Tap every tile, test every tap, open every door, charge at every socket.
- Photograph and submit defects in writing. Verbal complaints don't count.
- A professional inspection typically finds far more defects than an owner's walkthrough — and produces a legally recognised report.