Building Inspections in East Perth, Perth

East Perth is one of Australia's most extensively redeveloped inner-city precincts, rebuilt as medium-density apartment and townhouse stock from the early 1990s onwards around Claisebrook Cove and the East Perth Power Station precinct. The housing stock is predominantly post-1990, apartment towers, terrace townhouses, and mixed-use residential buildings, which means the defect profile here is quite different from Perth's heritage suburbs. Settlement cracking still shows up in 55% of our East Perth reports, driven by the Swan River alluvial flats and reactive clay pockets near the river, but the waterproofing, compliance, and termite management findings are what define this market. Lack of subterranean termite management program flags in 26% of our East Perth reports at an average severity of 3.63 out of 5, the highest severity score in the dataset. Many East Perth properties either never had a termite management plan installed during construction, or lost the documentation during subsequent renovation work. Without a current Form 58A or equivalent, a buyer has no baseline understanding of the termite barrier status. This matters on alluvial river-flat sites where moisture is persistently elevated and termite pressure is real. Aging shower waterproofing flags in 23% of reports at severity 2.86, and untested smoke alarms in 23% at severity 3.14, both classic apartment-turnover compliance findings that accumulate over multiple ownership cycles. External wall cracking at severity 2.88 and inadequate slab-edge exposure at 16% (severity 3.2) round out the consistent pattern. On pre-1970 workers' cottages that survived the redevelopment wave, the scope shifts to sub-floor ventilation, original roof structure, and lintel condition.

Every SURE inspection in East Perth covers the standard structural, moisture, roof, drainage, and timber pest scope. What changes is where we spend the extra time. We have 31 inspection reports behind this page, and the findings pattern is consistent with a post-redevelopment inner-city suburb rather than a heritage one. External wall cracking from settlement shows up in 55% of East Perth reports (17 out of 31) with an average severity of 2.88 - the most common finding, and a reminder that post-1990 apartment and townhouse stock still shows settlement response on the Swan River alluvial flats. General scuffs and marks on Bedroom 2 walls and front entry door paint deterioration flag in 36% and 29% of reports respectively - cosmetic findings typical of apartment turnover. Lack of subterranean termite management program flags in 26% of reports (8 out of 31) at an average severity of 3.63/5 - the highest severity score of any recurring finding here - which tells our inspector that many East Perth properties either never had a termite management plan installed or lost it during renovation. Aging shower waterproofing flags in 23% at severity 2.86/5, and untested smoke alarms flag in 23% at severity 3.14/5 - both classic apartment and townhouse compliance findings. Inadequate slab edge exposure flags in 16% at severity 3.2/5, and trees in close proximity to dwelling flag in 16% at severity 2.8/5. Moisture findings are present in 13 of 31 reports (42%), with aging shower waterproofing and moisture around wet areas the main drivers. On apartment and townhouse stock our inspector pays extra attention to waterproofing, slab-edge termite detailing, smoke-alarm compliance, and the subterranean termite management program documentation, which is often missing or outdated.