Project Close-Out

Congratulations! You are finally ready to move in.

Well, not quite yet. Before you start moving your belongings in, and certainly before you issue the last payment to your contractor, you need to perform a detailed walkthrough and prepare a "punchlist" for your contractor. Renovation is a complex business and there are many opportunities for things to get overlooked, particularly in the final stages as the pressure mounts to complete your project. The punchlist may be your last opportunity to get timely work out of your contractor - once you have approved the final payment and received the final lien waiver, your options become much more restricted.

A punchlist is simply a list of items (these items must be either specifically included or reasonably implied in the contract, of course) that the contractor needs to complete prior to receiving the final payment. You may want to prepare the punchlist with the assistance of your contractor. That way, you can ask questions and make sure that you are on the same page.

Some things you might want to pay particular attention to as you do your punchlist walkthrough include:

• Switches and lights - Flip every switch and make sure it is working and correctly installed

• Outlets - Purchase a cheap tester (you could even use a night light) and make sure that every outlet works.
• Faucets - Let the tap run until it gets hot (test the cold too)- as the water is warming up, look underneath to make sure there are no visible leaks in the drain
• Drywall - Examine every wall and make sure there are not "nail pops", cracks, or unfinished corners
• Paint - Examine every wall and ceiling to look for areas of poor coverage or obvious mistakes
• Fixtures - Make sure plumbing fixtures are caulked where required, flush every toilet, turn on the shower, etc.
• Cleaning - The contractor should turn over a clean building, and all construction waste should be removed (you may ask for leftover paint, carpet trimmings, etc.)
• HVAC - turn on all HVAC equipment (heat and cool) to test operation - make sure all required filters are installed
• Trim - Look for missing pieces of trim or base shoe, poor corners, and other obvious flaws

If the contractor is not present when you create the punchlist, give him or her a copy and discuss it in person. You may withhold a portion of the final payment until the punchlist items are corrected.

Your last step is to obtain the final inspection and get a copy of your certificate of occupancy if required. In addition to verifying the permitted work was performed and that the building meets minimum code requirements, your inspector will measure the rooms and make any changes to the city’s database. If anything does not meet building code or applicable city ordinances, you may be cited and required to make additional repairs within an acceptable time frame.