New Construction Final Walkthrough: The 20-Point Checklist

The final walkthrough on a new construction home — usually 3–7 days
before closing — is not a ceremony. It’s your last real leverage: items
documented now go on the builder’s punch list with closing pressure
behind them; items found after closing become warranty claims you chase
for months. Most walkthroughs are scheduled for an hour. Take two.
Here’s the actual checklist.

Before You Go

Bring: your contract and design-center order (you’re verifying you
got what you paid for), a phone charger (the humble outlet tester), a
marble or golf ball (floor slope), painter’s tape for marking defects,
and a checklist — this one. Schedule in daylight, and if you can, hire
an independent inspector for a pre-drywall and a final inspection
($400–$600 each); builders’ superintendents behave differently when a
licensed inspector is walking behind them.

Exterior (Start Outside)

1. Grading and drainage: soil should slope
   away from the foundation on all sides. Standing water lines or
   erosion channels near the slab are the cheapest problem to fix now and
   the most expensive to fix later.
2. Roof and gutters: from the ground with your phone
   camera zoomed — straight ridgelines, no lifted or missing shingles,
   downspouts that discharge away from the foundation (and confirm gutters
   were actually included; they aren’t always).
3. Siding, brick, stucco: cracks, unpainted patches,
   mortar gaps, damaged corners.
4. Concrete: hairline cracks in driveways and walks
   are normal; cracks you can catch a fingernail in, or slabs already
   settling toward the house, are punch-list items.
5. Exterior doors, hose bibs, outlets: every exterior
   door locks smoothly; both hose bibs flow; exterior outlets are live and
   covered.

Systems (The Expensive Stuff)

6. Every faucet, hot and cold — hot water should
   arrive within a reasonable wait, and look under every sink while the
   water runs: a dry cabinet floor after two minutes is the test.
7. Flush every toilet. Fill and drain every tub. Watch
   drain speed; listen for gurgling (venting problems announce themselves
   early).
8. HVAC in both modes — run heat and cooling
   regardless of season, feel airflow at every register in every room, and
   confirm the thermostat’s programmed schedule actually controls it. Ask
   where the filters are and what size.
9. Every outlet and switch — this is the phone-charger
   lap of the house. Test GFCI buttons in kitchen, baths, garage, and
   exterior. Confirm ceiling-fan-rated boxes where you ordered them.
10. Water heater, panel, shutoffs: no leaks at the
    water heater, breaker panel fully labeled (make them label it if not),
    and have the super physically show you the main water shutoff, gas
    shutoff, and sprinkler shutoff. Photograph all three.
11. Appliances: run the dishwasher a full cycle if time
    allows, all burners, oven to temperature, disposal, range hood venting
    outside (tissue test), washer/dryer connections if
    included.

Interior Finishes

12. Doors and windows: every interior door opens,
    closes, and latches without rubbing; every window opens, locks, and has
    screens; no fogging between panes (failed seal = replacement, not
    adjustment).
13. Floors: walk every room — squeaks, lippage between
    tiles, gaps at transitions. Set your marble down in suspect corners;
    persistent rolling in one direction is worth a conversation.
14. Walls, ceilings, trim: check in natural side-light
    for drywall seams, nail pops, paint holidays, and caulk gaps at trim.
    Tape-mark each defect — the punch list is only as good as its
    markers.
15. Cabinets and counters: every door and drawer,
    alignment and soft-close; counters for chips and seam quality; verify
    the actual granite/quartz slab and cabinet color against your
    design order. Design-center substitutions happen, and the walkthrough is
    when they’re free to fix.
16. Caulk and seal: tubs, showers, backsplashes,
    exterior penetrations. Missing caulk is a five-minute fix now and a
    water stain later.

Paperwork (Don’t Leave Without
It)

17. The punch list itself, in writing, signed by the builder’s
    rep, with a completion date for every item — ideally before
    closing, or with money escrowed for anything after.
18. Warranty documents and process: the standard
    structure is one-year workmanship, two-year systems, ten-year structural
    — get the claim procedure and the emergency contact in writing.
19. Manuals, registrations, and codes: appliance
    manuals and serial numbers, HVAC filter sizes, paint color names and
    codes (touch-up kits if offered), garage door codes and openers, and any
    smart-home logins the builder configured.
20. Ask the two magic questions: “What would you fix if
    this were your house?” and “Which trades are coming back, and when?”
    Superintendents answer honest questions more often than people
    expect.

If Things Are Wrong

Volume matters less than severity: a 30-item punch list of paint
touch-ups is a normal Tuesday; one item involving drainage, structure,
or a system that doesn’t run is a reason to delay
closing — your leverage drops by roughly 100% the moment you
fund. Most builders will fix a long cosmetic list without drama. Put
everything in writing, photograph everything, and never accept “we’ll
take care of it after closing” without a signed date and, ideally,
escrowed funds.

Walkthrough rights and warranty terms vary by contract and state
— read yours before the appointment. See our companion guides on builder
questions and the hidden costs of new construction.

Sources

• Industry-standard 1/2/10 warranty structure — NAHB (nahb.org)
• Punch list and walkthrough practice — compiled from builder and
  inspection industry guidance; independent inspection pricing from
  national inspector associations’ published ranges