Keep in mind: Checking a box records your own administration only. It does not approve work, transfer responsibility, certify compliance, establish completion, or predict an inspection outcome.
1. Property, Feasibility and Approval Pathway
Confirm the site, proposal, authority, and owner-builder pathway before relying on programme or cost assumptions.
Property and title information reviewed
Responsibility to confirm: Owner, surveyor, conveyancer, planner and relevant authorities
Check boundaries, easements, covenants, services, access, constraints, and current official records.
Approval pathway and authority confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Consent authority, certifier or surveyor, planner and legal adviser
Record eligibility, applications, referrals, notices, conditions, amendments, inspections, certificates, and close-out.
Owner-builder pathway confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Current regulator, insurer, lender and legal adviser
Verify eligibility, work-value calculation, training, permit or consent, restrictions, insurance, records, and later-sale duties.
Feasibility and alternatives reviewed
Responsibility to confirm: Owner and independent property, design, engineering, cost, finance, tax, insurance and legal advisers
Compare credible options using the same project brief and clearly labelled assumptions.
2. Design, Investigations and Issued Documents
Required surveys and investigations identified
Responsibility to confirm: Design team and appropriately qualified investigators
Confirm geotechnical, hazardous-material, contamination, flood, bushfire, heritage, tree, service, drainage, and adjoining-property needs.
Design responsibilities and interfaces recorded
Responsibility to confirm: Architect or designer, engineers, consultants and contractors
Record who designs, coordinates, reviews, certifies, changes, and issues each document.
Current issued document register prepared
Responsibility to confirm: Document controller or agreed project lead
Track title, number, revision, status, issuer, date, recipients, superseded versions, and approvals.
Specifications, schedules and selections coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Design team, owner, suppliers and affected trades
Resolve inconsistencies and identify provisional, owner-supplied, delegated-design, and undecided items.
3. Contracts, Procurement and Finance
Candidate businesses independently screened
Responsibility to confirm: Owner with legal, financial, safety and technical advice as needed
Verify entity, licence or registration, insurance, capability, references, availability, responsible people, and conflicts.
Written proposals aligned
Responsibility to confirm: Owner, designer, cost adviser and affected trades
Align drawings, quantities, specifications, inclusions, exclusions, supply, access, testing, evidence, programme, tax, and terms.
Contracts and payment process reviewed
Responsibility to confirm: Qualified legal adviser, owner, lender and contract administrator
Check deposits, claims, evidence, due dates, variations, delays, defects, security, termination, disputes, and non-excludable rights.
Cash flow and contingency basis recorded
Responsibility to confirm: Owner, lender, accountant and cost adviser
Use project-specific scenarios and advice; do not copy a generic contingency percentage or assume finance timing.
4. Insurance, Safety and Site Controls
Insurance and statutory schemes confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Licensed insurer or broker, regulator, lender and legal adviser
Confirm insured parties, activities, property, periods, limits, exclusions, excesses, worker arrangements, changes, and evidence.
Safety roles and plans confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Parties holding duties under current law and the project arrangements
Do not infer safety duties from this template. Confirm competent people, consultation, inductions, permits, controls, incidents, and records.
Site access, security and public protection planned
Responsibility to confirm: Owner, contractors, designer, authority and safety advisers
Coordinate fencing, signage, access, traffic, neighbours, dust, noise, vibration, emergency access, and maintenance.
Temporary facilities and services planned
Responsibility to confirm: Relevant providers, licensed trades, hirers and site controller
Confirm approvals, connection, protection, capacity, servicing, hire, metering, waste, and removal.
5. Demolition, Earthworks and Foundations
Demolition and hazardous-material pathway confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Authority and appropriately licensed assessors, removalists, contractors and advisers
Align notifications, services, removal, monitoring, clearance, waste, access, records, levels, testing, and handover.
Earthworks and site-condition assumptions resolved
Responsibility to confirm: Geotechnical and structural engineers, surveyor and earthworks contractor
Record classification, excavation, fill, disposal, import, retaining, groundwater, erosion, compaction, testing, and temporary works.
Foundation design and services coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Structural engineer, hydraulic designer, surveyor and contractors
Use the current issued design and confirm set-out, penetrations, reinforcement, membranes, interfaces, testing, and evidence.
Pre-concealment requirements confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Appointed certifier or authority and relevant professionals
Obtain the exact written notice, inspection, hold-point, test, certificate, and acceptance requirements before placement or covering.
6. Structure and External Envelope
Structure installed to current issued design
Responsibility to confirm: Responsible contractors, engineer and appointed inspector
Confirm fabrication, treatment, delivery, lifting, temporary stability, connections, approved changes, inspections, and records.
Roof and wall systems coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Designer, suppliers, installers and relevant consultants
Resolve compatible substrates, membranes, cavities, flashings, penetrations, drainage, condensation, fire, acoustic, and maintenance details.
Windows and doors coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Designer, supplier, installer and certifying parties
Confirm schedule, opening, performance, glazing, hardware, reveals, flashing, sealing, delivery, installation, and evidence.
Envelope inspection and test requirements confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Appointed certifier or authority and relevant professionals
Ask what must be visible, tested, photographed, certified, accepted, or rectified before access is removed or work is covered.
7. Services, Insulation and Linings
Service designs and rough-in coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Licensed service trades, designers, suppliers and affected contractors
Coordinate routes, penetrations, access, clearances, equipment, controls, capacity, testing, commissioning, and certification.
Energy, acoustic, fire and moisture requirements confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Relevant designers, assessors, installers and certifiers
Use current approved documents and record product, location, installation, interface, evidence, and changes.
Pre-lining evidence plan confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Appointed certifier or authority, designers and contractors
Confirm notice, inspection, photographs, test results, certificates, statements, and what must remain visible.
Lining and waterproofing systems coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Designer, substrate and finish trades, waterproofer and certifying parties
Confirm compatible systems, preparation, falls, junctions, penetrations, curing, testing, inspection, protection, and records.
8. Finishes, Fixtures and Fit-Off
Shop drawings, samples and selections accepted
Responsibility to confirm: Owner and authorised design or contract parties
Record who may approve, the accepted revision, programme effect, price effect, and whether approval changes contractual responsibility.
Substrates, measurements and prerequisites confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Affected suppliers, fabricators and installers
Coordinate site measure, tolerances, moisture, curing, access, protection, services, and preceding-work acceptance.
Fit-off, testing and commissioning planned
Responsibility to confirm: Licensed trades, suppliers, designers and commissioning parties
Record procedures, settings, results, demonstrations, defects, certificates, manuals, warranties, and training.
Finished-work protection allocated
Responsibility to confirm: Contractors and site controller
Agree protection, access, cleaning, damage reporting, rectification, removal, and responsibility through completion.
9. External Works and Services
Drainage, levels and external works coordinated
Responsibility to confirm: Civil or hydraulic designer, landscape designer, surveyor and contractors
Use approved designs and confirm falls, overland flow, services, access, boundaries, interfaces, testing, and records.
Driveways, paths, retaining and fencing scoped
Responsibility to confirm: Designers, authority, surveyor, neighbours where relevant, and contractors
Confirm approvals, boundaries, engineering, protection, finishes, levels, drainage, traffic, access, and handover.
Landscape and planting responsibilities recorded
Responsibility to confirm: Landscape designer, contractor, owner and authority
Confirm soil, species, establishment, irrigation, protection, maintenance, replacement, and approval conditions.
Permanent service connection process confirmed
Responsibility to confirm: Each service provider and relevant licensed trade
Record application, design, inspection, payment, construction, meter, activation, evidence, lead time, and exclusions.
10. Completion, Occupation and Handover
Completion and defect process followed
Responsibility to confirm: Contract parties, consultants and relevant inspectors
Use the contract and current law for notices, inspections, lists, access, rectification, acceptance, payment, and disputes.
Required inspections and certificates accepted
Responsibility to confirm: Appointed certifier or authority and authorised issuers
Obtain the exact written schedule; do not infer acceptance from a certificate copy, app status, or contractor statement.
Occupation permission confirmed in writing
Responsibility to confirm: Relevant authority or certifier and legal adviser
Do not occupy based on this checklist. Confirm the exact approval, conditions, exclusions, and remaining obligations.
Handover records and ongoing duties documented
Responsibility to confirm: Contractors, designers, suppliers, owner, insurer and facility or maintenance parties
Collect issued drawings, manuals, warranties, keys, settings, tests, certificates, assets, maintenance, defects, insurance, and retention records.