Home Inspection
Pre-purchase and pre-renovation inspections that look past the finishes at the structure, the mechanical systems and the code, so you know what you are buying, or what a renovation will really involve.
What’s included
The same team that designs structure, mechanical systems and permit drawings walks the house. That is what lets us say which wall carries load, whether the basement could be a legal unit, and whether the addition looks like it went through the city.
Before you buy
A walk through the house with an engineer’s eye before you waive conditions: foundation, framing, roof structure, mechanical systems and the signs of work done without a permit.
Before you plan
What a renovation will actually involve: which walls carry load, where the ducts and drains can go, and whether the basement can become a legal unit.
When something looks wrong
Cracks, sagging floors, bowing walls or a deck that moves: a P.Eng assessment of what is happening and what, if anything, needs to be done.
Existing work
A review of finished or in-progress work against the Ontario Building Code, for buyers, owners responding to a city order, or anyone who needs a professional opinion in writing.
The package
Find your situation below. If it’s there, this is the service, and the card underneath is everything you get from our one office.
06 common situations
06
items in your package, all from one P.Eng and BCIN team.
Drawn & stamped in-house
How it runs
Four steps from booking to a report you can act on.
Tell us the address, the closing or condition date, and what worries you about the house. We fit pre-purchase inspections around your deadline where we can.
We go through the structure, the attic and the basement, the mechanical room and the electrical panel, and note anything that looks like work done without a permit.
Findings, photos and priorities in plain language, with structural observations from our P.Eng where they apply and a note on what a renovation would need.
We go through the report with you on a call. If the answer is a repair, a permit or a design, the same team can carry on with it.
Case files
Open any file for the scope, the disciplines involved, what we delivered and what the owner came away with.
A compact two-storey suite in a Toronto backyard. Architectural and structural drawings, zoning review and a framing package that makes every square foot count.
Delivered
New living space on a lot the owners already had.
Start a project like this
Structural walls came out and rooms were added to open the plan. Beam and column design, permit drawings and renovation coordination through to final inspection.
Delivered
An open layout where the load-bearing walls used to be.
Start a project like thisA code-compliant second unit with its own entrance, fire separations between the units, HVAC design and the full permit package.
Delivered
A legal second unit that brings in rent and adds property value.
Start a project like this
A new build taken from the client’s sketch to occupancy, with the architectural, structural and mechanical design done by one team.
Delivered
Built to the client’s own plan, with one team answering for every discipline.
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A two-storey garden suite laid out to get the most usable space from the footprint, designed and permitted as a rentable unit.
Delivered
Rental income and a higher property value.
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A dental office converted into a supermarket. Interior renovation, a new plumbing system and fire separations upgraded to the Ontario Fire Code.
Delivered
A dental office reopened as a supermarket, compliant with the Ontario Fire Code.
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A custom covered porch that turns the front of the house into usable outdoor space. Addition design and structural drawings for the permit.
Delivered
More usable outdoor space and added home value.
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Site grading to manage drainage and prepare the land for a new driveway, drawn as a grading plan for the site alteration permit.
Delivered
Drainage handled and the land ready for a new driveway.
Start a project like thisPhoto plates
Additions, basements, kitchens, new builds and commercial fit-outs. Drag a row to scrub through it, or open any photo full size.Tap any photo to see it full size.
21 platesResidential, commercial & new build
The drawing set
Framing schedules, wall assemblies, dimensions and a city review stamp, as issued. Client title blocks are trimmed off to protect the people we drew them for.
Drawing set
Sheets in this set
Sheet title
Existing basement plan
The existing house recorded before any design: beams, joists and bearing walls.
Drawing no.
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Service area
From the office we cover the whole GTA, north to Barrie and Orillia, east to Peterborough and Cobourg, west to Kitchener and Brantford, and down through Niagara.
46 across 8 regions
York Region
Toronto & Peel
Halton
Durham
Simcoe & Dufferin
Waterloo, Wellington & Brant
Hamilton, Niagara & Haldimand
Kawarthas & Northumberland
Past the 90-minute line
We've also completed projects in London and Strathroy. Farther out than that? Call (416) 990-9179 and ask.
Permits filed with municipalities including
Before you call
Anything we haven’t answered here, we’ll answer on a call. The first consultation is free.
(416) 990-9179A standard home inspection is a visual check of the house’s condition. Ours is carried out by an engineering team that also designs structure, mechanical systems and permit drawings, so we can tell you whether a wall carries load, what the framing allows in a renovation and whether an addition looks like it went through the city. We do not replace a specialist inspection for pests, mould or buried tanks.
Our engineering team does, and the structural notes come from our P.Eng, who is licensed by Professional Engineers Ontario and BCIN-qualified in Small Buildings, Structural and HVAC. There is no provincial licence for home inspectors yet: the Home Inspection Act, 2017 would create one but has not come into force. So whoever you hire, ask which qualification they hold and who regulates it.
We try to. Tell us the date the condition expires when you book and we will say straight away whether we can fit the site visit and the report in.
We look for the signs of it: finishes that hide structure, a second unit without proper separation or egress, wiring or plumbing that does not match the age of the house, and additions with no drawings. We can also help you check the municipality’s permit records.
A pre-purchase inspection does not certify that, and the province’s own guidance says a home inspection is no test of code or zoning compliance. Ours flags work that looks non-compliant, such as a basement bedroom without an egress window or a beam that looks undersized for its span. When you need a firm answer on a specific piece of work, our code compliance review checks it against the Ontario Building Code and puts the result in writing.
Yes, as a pre-renovation review. We measure the ceiling against the Ontario Building Code’s 1.95 m for a second unit, look at where a separate entrance and egress could go, and check the fire separation and HVAC options. You find out whether the unit is realistic, and what the permit would involve, before the offer goes firm.
We can tell you what it would involve: the permits, the structural and mechanical work, and the limits the house sets. With a real estate broker on the team we can also speak to what it would do to the property’s value. Construction pricing comes from a defined scope, which we can prepare as a next step.
Where they need an engineer’s letter on a specific structural question, yes, our P.Eng can provide one. Ask when you book so we cover what they will look for.
Searched & answered
Short answers to the home inspection questions people search most, and the broader topics they lead to.
Not covered here? Book a free consultationIt depends on the house and on the scope you ask for. Size, age, a finished basement, an addition and poor attic access all lengthen the visit and the report, and a P.Eng structural assessment or an engineer’s letter adds to the work. Specialist testing is separate. Fine Engineering prices the scope once it knows the address, after a free first consultation.
Signs that the house is moving, taking on water or has been altered. That means cracks and settlement in the foundation, sagging floors and roof framing, stains in the attic and basement, the condition of the heating, plumbing and electrical, and finishes that hide structure or unpermitted work. At Fine Engineering the same visit includes an engineer’s view of what carries load.
It depends on the size and age of the house and on how much of it can be reached. Finished basements, blocked attic hatches and a crowded mechanical room take longer, and a structural assessment of a crack or a sagging floor adds time on site. Fine Engineering tells you how long to allow when you book, so the seller and the agent can plan access.
An on-site, visual examination of the house’s condition and structure: foundation, framing, roof structure and attic, basement, heating, plumbing, electrical and the exterior. Anything hidden behind finished walls is noted as a limit rather than opened up. With Fine Engineering it ends in a written report with photos and priorities, a note on the permits your plans would need and a call to go through it.
If the house has a finished basement, an addition, visible cracks or sloping floors, or you plan a major renovation, an engineer’s inspection tells you what a checklist cannot: whether the structure is sound, what was permitted and what the renovation would involve. Fine Engineering carries out pre-purchase inspections across the GTA.
Often, yes. The opening needs a beam sized for the load above, posts under each end and a path that carries the load down to the foundation. The Building Code’s span tables cover some simple cases, but once the beam falls outside them, a licensed P.Eng has to design and stamp it. Fine Engineering prepares the engineering and the permit drawings together.
Good to know
Ontario does not currently have mandatory requirements for home inspectors. The Home Inspection Act, 2017 would require people who perform home inspections to be licensed, apart from exemptions set by regulation, but it is not yet in force. Until it is, the qualification behind an inspection has to be checked person by person.
The province’s buyer guidance suggests asking an inspector about accreditation, references, insurance and a written contract, and notes that insurance is not currently required by law. Our structural notes come from a P.Eng licensed by Professional Engineers Ontario, a licence you can confirm on the PEO public register before you book.
A home inspection is not a pass or fail test, and it does not assess whether a home meets zoning or building codes. Ontario describes it as a visual inspection of a home’s major elements and systems, and the inspector gives no warranty on the home’s condition.
Two other checks deal with the code. Municipal building inspectors inspect construction done under a permit, at the stages the Building Code sets, once the permit holder calls for them. For finished work that never had a permit, such as a basement suite or an addition, our code compliance review checks it against the Ontario Building Code and sets out what a permit would need.
A pre-purchase inspection only helps while the offer is still conditional, so book it as soon as the condition date is agreed and give us that date. We plan the visit around the seller’s access and tell you at booking whether the report can be in your hands before the condition expires.
Bring whatever paperwork the house has: the listing, the seller’s disclosures, and drawings or permits for a finished basement or an addition. Gaps in that file show where to look hardest on site. If the seller cannot produce the permits, the municipality’s building department keeps permit records by address.
Mostly the house. A larger or older house, a finished basement, an addition or a second unit takes longer to inspect and to write up, and a crawlspace or attic with poor access adds time. Then the scope: a P.Eng assessment of a particular crack or floor, an engineer’s letter for a lender, or a review of the renovation you plan each add work.
Whatever the scope, every inspection ends with written findings, photos and priorities, and a call to go through them. We quote once we know the address and what you want covered, and the first consultation is free.
Contact us
Tell us the address and your condition date, and we’ll tell you whether we can fit the inspection in, on a free first call.
First consultation free(416) 990-9179