Why a building inspection may not be enough
A building inspector looks at the whole house and isn't necessarily an electrician. Ask what their report covers on the electrics. If it says little more than 'switchboard appears old', an electrician can tell you what that actually means: whether it's safe, what the rules require, and what fixing it involves.
What the electrician looks at
- The switchboard: fuses or breakers, how many safety switches, and which circuits they cover.
- Signs that an older meter panel or backing board may contain asbestos.
- Visible wiring in the roof space and under the floor, including any old rubber or cloth cable.
- Smoke alarms: type, age, power source and whether they're interconnected.
- Power points, switches and lights with heat marks, cracks or signs of amateur work.
- The supply, single or three phase, and room for what you want to add, like an EV charger or solar.
- Private poles or overhead lines on the property, which are the owner's responsibility.
What the rules make the buyer or seller fix
Queensland: the seller must tell you in writing, on or before possession, whether an approved safety switch protects the power points. If there isn't one, you have 90 days after taking possession to have it installed. The seller must also say in writing whether compliant smoke alarms are fitted, and the interconnected photoelectric rules have applied on sale since 1 January 2022.
Western Australia: safety switches must protect every power point and lighting circuit before the title transfers, and compliant smoke alarms, mains powered unless an exception applies, must be in place before ownership changes. Northern Territory: older ionisation alarms can only stay until the day before settlement, so a sale is when they get replaced.
New South Wales: NSW Fair Trading strongly recommends having a licensed electrician check whether safety switches are fitted in any home built before 2000. A pre-purchase inspection answers that before the house is yours.
The findings that turn a good buy into a big job
Old fuse boards, asbestos backing boards and original wiring are the usual ones. The NSW Government says dark bituminous backing boards made before 1987 can contain asbestos, and Victoria's Asbestos Hub says a home built or renovated before 1990 likely contains asbestos somewhere. If you're planning an EV charger, Ausgrid notes that homes over 20 years old that haven't been rewired may need a meter upgrade.
On bigger or rural blocks, look up as well as down. Ausgrid says owners are responsible for assets beyond its connection point, such as private poles and overhead lines to the meter or switchboard. It patrols private poles in bushfire prone areas, and under NSW law owners need to respond to a defect notice within 30 days.
Ask before you book the inspection
- Will you test circuits and safety switches, or is it a visual inspection only?
- Will I get a written report I can show the agent or my conveyancer?
- Will you separate urgent safety issues from upgrades that can wait?
- Do you check smoke alarms against this state's rules?
- Which licence do you hold in this state, and can I look it up before you come?
What you can check while you're viewing
You can
- Look at the switchboard through the meter box door, with the agent's permission, and take a photo.
- Ask the agent for compliance certificates, electrical reports and smoke alarm records.
- Note any warm, cracked or scorched power points and flickering lights.
- Ask when the switchboard and wiring were last updated.
Leave to a licensed electrician
- Testing safety switches, circuits and earthing.
- Inspecting wiring in the roof space and under the house.
- Judging whether a backing board may contain asbestos.
- Writing a report that ranks safety issues ahead of upgrades.
Before you go unconditional
We'd book a licensed electrician for any house with fuses, no safety switches or an unknown electrical history, and ask for a written report you can take back to the vendor. Do it while the contract still lets you act. A switchboard or rewire you know about before you sign is something to negotiate; one you find after settlement is simply yours.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.