I'm watching this to see what responses you get, I am in the same position. Will walk on Tuesday.

Don't you have a new home warranty from this builder as within X number of years the builder will take care of problems for your new house? similar to a new car warranty.

Years ago we purchased a brand new house, we had punch list walk through that generated a list of issues. The builder fixed them all. Then whenever we found other problems after we moved in, the warranty took care of them.

We had a friend went to the walk through with us. She prepared a bag of tools, including binocular, rulers, flashlight, paint samples, magnifying glass, hammers, screwdrivers, camera, note pad...etc. The builder was not very happy seeing her, but it was great for us.

Surely you must have at least one friend who knows something about construction techniques who can be a second set of eyes on the walkthrough.

We bought a few new homes, although now built to our specifications. All the homes had a one year warranty for odd stuff that comes up, because they do and I can't imagine them being spotted in a walk through. Will someone be there to tell you how to work your house, explain things? That would be helpful.

What happens if the problems are NOT fixed before the 7th day? Builders HATE to do the 'nits' on punch lists. Some will just refuse. They've already got the big money.

Be prepared to ask for money back at the closing if your concerns have not been addressed.

It's easier to see something that is present and done wrong. It's harder to realize what may be missing.

I would feel time pressure walking through *with* the builder. Can't you go through on your own and mark problem areas, making a list of them as you go? (This shouldn't be a problem if the house has a Certificate of Occupancy from your municipality.) THEN he can walk through with you, noting your concerns. He should give you a signed copy of what he is agreeing to fix.

I googled "new house walk through checklist" and found this very comprehensive guide.

Hey, my idea is in there! Except they use stickers. And they may have more, but I really guffawed at this typo: "Does the ground slop"... HA! Doncha mean slope?

Our builder would like us to sign off on the punch list, I"m reluctant b/c what if I find things wrong 3 days from now? I feel like he his trying to limit our rights.

It seems like signing off on the list just says that that stuff is done to your satisfaction, would there not be a home warranty that would take care of anything that may have been missed in the walk.

Violet-

There are two kinds of things at issue here: 1) the stuff that is obviously in need of fixing and is often cosmetic, like small finish details, and 2) stuff that is not obvious that may be hidden or may develop in the future. The stuff that falls in the first category is on you: he wants to be done with the project and you need to be observant enough to tell him whether there is anything that doesn't meet your quality standards that should be fixed now. Take your time, do the type of identifying walkthrough beforehand that others have suggested above, and then go through a second time with him and the punch list. The stuff that falls in the second category may not be obvious to you or to him, and that's where a warranty comes in. Do you have a warranty or some type of guarantee in writing about what happens if stuff other than on the punch list shows up in the first year and needs to be fixed? Have you discussed this with him? I understand your concern, but I also understand the contractor's viewpoint: he doesn't want you calling him back every couple of weeks after the job was supposedly completed because of some minor sheet rock ding you didn't point out on the walkthrough.

Thanks, Kudzu. That does put it in perspective. He is committed to visiting us in 6 weeks for those cosmetic things we may have missed or any issues that may arise once we are living in the home plus an 11 month visit before a 12 month cosmetic warranty expires.

Violet-

That sounds reassuring to me...glad you got it worked out.