Months have led to this point, and now the pool is almost finished. It began with extensive design meetings between the custom home builder and pool builder. During each step of the construction process, both contractors have inspected the site:
Grading and elevations? Check.
Excavation? Check.
Steel and pregunite—the point of no return? Everything on target.
So it went through each phase. And now everything’s good to go, right? Wrong.
The two builders still should take one last walk-through to inspect the property for problems either may have missed. This provides a final opportunity for the home builder to ask for repairs or alterations. Then, to protect both contractors, a second walk-through should be completed with the homeowners before handing off the property. During both inspections, the parties must examine all details, from the mechanical to the purely aesthetic.
The walk-through: Home builder and pool builder. The custom home builder and pool builder must consider a number of things when performing the final walk-through together.
The first is scheduling, says Deborah Malone, president of custom home builder J.P. Malone Construction Inc., based in Scottsdale, Ariz. Malone plans a walk-through with her subcontractors at least a week before her clients get a final look. This leaves enough time to identify and complete last-minute repairs before the homeowner sees the project. “I don’t ream my trades in front of my clients, and my clients don’t know that there’s been a problem,” Malone says.
This whole process begins three to four weeks before the home closes. That way, the home builder has plenty of time to make repairs or additions during the client walk-through.
The next thing to consider is documentation. Malone uses a form and checks each item off as she and the pool contractor go through the project. She lists what the pool builder has agreed to do and when they’ll get paid.
