Calgary Home Inspection FAQ

Most Calgary home inspections fall between $340 and $725 in 2026. Condos typically start around $340, townhomes around $465, and detached homes around $495 and up depending on square footage, age and complexity.

Square footage, age of home, foundation type (slab, crawl, basement, walkout), presence of a secondary suite, garage type, and add-ons like sewer scope or thermal imaging.

Yes, slightly — pre-1970 homes take longer because of knob-and-tube remnants, galvanized supply, 60-amp panels and Poly-B/Kitec history. The fee reflects the additional time, not a different scope.

Yes. Acreages add wells, septic (visual), outbuildings and longer service runs, so they sit at the upper end of the range and a small travel surcharge may apply outside the core service area.

Airdrie, Chestermere, and most of Cochrane and Okotoks fall inside the standard service area with no travel surcharge. Strathmore, Langdon and rural acreages may have a small travel fee confirmed at booking.

Same-week appointments are usually available, with evening and weekend slots during busy market periods. Most bookings happen within 1–3 business days.

Yes. Payment is due at or shortly after the inspection by e-transfer or credit card — never required to release the report.

Pricing is the same for all buyers — the value is in the quality of the inspection and report, not a promotional rate.

A standard inspection follows InterNACHI's Standards of Practice: roof, exterior, structure, foundation, basement, attic, insulation, ventilation, electrical, plumbing, heating, cooling (when conditions allow), interior, doors, windows, fireplace and built-in appliances.

No — it is a visual, non-invasive inspection. The inspector will not cut into walls, remove cladding, or move stored items. Anything not visible cannot be evaluated.

Radon is not part of a standard home inspection. A long-term (90-day) test is the gold standard and can be added on request. Health Canada's action level is 200 Bq/m³.

Yes — thermal imaging is used throughout the inspection where it adds value (envelope, electrical, plumbing). Findings are correlated with moisture meter readings to avoid false positives.

Sewer scope is a recommended add-on for any home over ~20 years old, especially in mature neighbourhoods with clay-tile or cast-iron mains. It is quoted separately.

Typical detached homes take 2.5–3.5 hours on site. Condos run 1.5–2 hours. Large or older homes can run 4+ hours.

Reports are delivered same day — usually within 4–6 hours of the inspection — as an interactive Spectora report with photos, video and a summary.

Yes, and it's encouraged. Plan to arrive for the final hour for a full walk-through of findings — the most efficient way to absorb the report.

Attic frost and ventilation deficiencies, Poly-B plumbing in 1985–1997 builds, Kitec in 1995–2007 builds, aluminum branch wiring in 1965–1977 homes, negative lot grading on clay soils, and aging mid-efficiency furnaces in 1990s builds.

It's a warning sign, not a roof leak. Attic frost almost always points to air-sealing and ventilation problems at the ceiling plane. Left unaddressed it can stain ceilings during chinooks and shorten roof life.

Poly-B is a material insurance and resale issue in Calgary. Some insurers surcharge, exclude or refuse coverage. Active leaks usually appear at fittings. Full replacement budgets typically range from $6,000–$15,000 for a standard home.

Kitec is subject to a class-action settlement and is widely flagged by Alberta insurers. Even with no visible leak, it is generally treated as a replace-now item by buyers and lenders.

Not necessarily — properly terminated aluminum with CO/ALR devices or AlumiConn/COPALUM pigtails is acceptable. Loose, oxidized or untreated terminations are a fire risk and an insurance question.

Hairline vertical cracks in poured concrete are common and rarely structural. Horizontal cracks, stair-step cracks in block, or cracks wider than ~5mm warrant a structural review. Calgary clay soils amplify movement during wet/dry cycles.

Yes, enough to test. Calgary geology produces elevated indoor radon in a meaningful share of homes. A long-term test is inexpensive and definitive.

Yes. Chinook freeze-thaw cycles drive ice damming on under-ventilated, poorly air-sealed Calgary roofs. The fix is air-sealing and ventilation — not heat cable.

Yes. New builds in Calgary regularly show framing, insulation, ventilation and finish defects that the builder's PDI will not catch. A third-party inspection protects you before possession and again at 11 months.

An independent inspection performed 2–10 days before possession to document defects the builder is contractually obligated to address before close.

A comprehensive inspection scheduled before the first anniversary of possession, while the Alberta New Home Warranty 1-year workmanship-and-materials coverage is still in force.

No. The PDI is builder-led and time-limited. A parallel third-party inspection provides documented, independent findings and a written report you control.

Yes — pre-drywall and pre-board inspections review framing, plumbing rough-ins, electrical, HVAC and insulation while everything is still visible. Most valuable on custom or inner-city infill builds.

No. The builder is not required to attend and typically does not. The buyer receives the report and uses it to drive the deficiency list.

Immediately after offer acceptance. Inspection is the most time-sensitive condition — give yourself the full condition period to read the report and negotiate.

7–10 business days is typical in Calgary. In hot markets some buyers accept 5 — but that leaves no margin for follow-up trades to provide repair estimates.

You have three options before condition removal: walk away, ask for price reduction, or ask for the seller to repair. Major findings often justify a second-stage specialist (roofer, electrician, structural).

Never. Once conditions are removed the inspection report no longer provides exit leverage and you own every issue it identified.

Yes — the inspection condition is a buyer's exit. As long as conditions have not been removed, an unsatisfactory inspection is a valid reason to terminate.

The report identifies defects, severity and recommended next steps. Ballpark repair ranges are sometimes provided as context, but firm pricing comes from licensed trades.

Yes. A condo inspection reviews the unit itself plus visible common-element interfaces — plumbing penetrations, electrical panel, HVAC, windows and doors. It does not replace a condo document review.

It covers the same systems within the unit boundary, plus accessible portions of the building that affect the unit (e.g., balcony envelope, in-suite HVAC, hot water source if dedicated).

A standard inspection does not include a full condo document review — that's typically performed by a specialized doc reviewer or your lawyer. The inspector can flag obvious mechanical concerns from documents you provide.

Yes — townhomes typically start around $465 in 2026, between condo and detached pricing, reflecting smaller scope (often no exterior maintenance or roof responsibility under bare-land condos vs. fee-simple).

Yes, especially for homes over ~25 years old or with known deferred maintenance. A pre-listing inspection surfaces issues you can price in or fix on your timeline, instead of being renegotiated under deadline pressure.

Yes — many sellers post it with the listing to demonstrate transparency and reduce buyer-side condition periods. The buyer is still entitled to their own inspection.

Defects identified must be disclosed if they fall within the scope of Alberta's seller property disclosure. This is exactly why a pre-listing inspection is a strategic decision — fix, price, or disclose.

A Spectora interactive report with categorized findings, severity tags, photos, embedded video, a one-page summary, and recommended next steps for each significant issue.

Only with your permission. The client is the buyer, and report distribution is at the buyer's direction.

Yes. A short follow-up call to walk through the report and prioritize findings is included at no charge.

Email or text any time. Ongoing access to the inspector is part of the deliverable, not an upsell.

Yes — focused re-inspections for negotiated repairs are available and priced by scope, not by full inspection fee.