Structural or cosmetic? How to read cracking in a building report
Building inspection reports generally describe cracking by severity rather than estimating repair cost. Anything classified as more than minor, or described as structural, is a question for an engineer — not for the inspector who wrote it.
Pre-purchase building inspections in Australia are commonly carried out to AS 4349.1. The inspector reports what they can see in accessible areas and classifies its significance. What they generally do NOT do is tell you what it costs to fix or whether the building is structurally sound — those are an engineer's and a builder's calls.
That division is why a report can look alarming and be routine, or look mild and matter enormously. The words to slow down on:
- Anything described as "structural" — even briefly, even in passing.
- Cracking classified at a higher damage category, or described as "significant" or "major".
- Any recommendation to obtain a further report from an engineer. That is the inspector saying this is beyond what they can determine.
- Movement described as "ongoing", "recent" or "progressive" rather than historic and stable.
If a building report recommends a structural engineer, that recommendation IS the finding. Getting the engineer is not optional diligence — the inspector has told you they cannot answer the question.
Also note what was not inspected. Roof voids, subfloors and areas behind stored goods are commonly inaccessible, and a list of them at the back of the report is a list of places nobody has looked.
What to ask
Copy these into an email. The people below can answer them; we can’t.
- To a structural engineer: the building report classifies the cracking at [X] and recommends further assessment — what is causing it, is it ongoing, and what does rectification involve?
- To your building inspector: which areas could you not access, and what would you expect to find there given what you did see?
Want this found in your own documents?
Home Decoded reads your building, pest, strata and contract reports and pulls out what matters — with the exact quote and page behind every finding, so you can check it against the original.
Related
General information about what these documents say — not legal, building or financial advice, and not a substitute for your conveyancer, solicitor or licensed inspector. Law and practice change, schemes differ, and your contract may say something different from the general position described here.