The Snagging Checklist to Use Before You Accept Your House

Snagging is the formal walk through where you list every defect before accepting the property and releasing final payment. Do it slowly, in daylight, with the services switched on, and write everything down. The single biggest mistake is doing it after the money has moved, because at that point a contractor returns as a favour rather than as an obligation.

When should snagging happen?

After all work is complete and the site has been cleaned, but before final payment and before you move furniture in.

Cleaning matters because dust hides scratches, paint marks and grout defects. An uncleaned site is not ready for snagging, and walking it early wastes the visit.

Doing it before furniture arrives matters because furniture covers floors and walls, and because you can test every door swing and every socket without moving things.

Go in daylight. Many finish defects, particularly on paint, polish and gloss surfaces, are invisible under artificial light and obvious under a window.

How do you actually run the walk?

1. Take a torch, a phone charger to test sockets, a spirit level if you have one, and a notepad.
2. Work room by room in a fixed order so nothing is skipped.
3. In each room work in the same sequence: floor, walls, ceiling, doors and windows, joinery, electrical, plumbing.
4. Photograph every defect and number it.
5. Put low tack tape beside each item so the person fixing it finds it without you present.
6. Produce one written list, share it, and agree a date for the return visit.
7. Re inspect after the fixes. Do not assume.

What should you check in every room?

Doors. Open and close each one fully. It should latch without lifting or pushing, stay where you leave it rather than swinging on its own, and have an even gap all the way round. Check that the handle and lock work from both sides and that the door does not catch the floor.

Windows. Open, close and lock every one. Look for gaps at the frame and check that any drainage holes are clear.

Electrical. Test every socket with a charger, not by looking at it. Operate every switch and confirm which light it controls. Check that switch plates sit flush and level, and that no socket is hidden behind a planned furniture position.

Floors. Look along the floor at a low angle towards a window. That is how you see lippage between tiles, hollow patches and scratches. Tap tiles to listen for hollow sounds.

Walls and ceilings. Look at a low angle again for roller marks, patches and uneven finish. Check corners and the line where wall meets ceiling.

What should you check in the kitchen?

• Open and close every drawer and shutter. Gaps should be even and consistent along the run, and soft close should actually engage.
• Check that shutters align with each other, both vertically and horizontally.
• Look underneath the sink with a torch for damp, and run the tap for a few minutes then check again.
• Check the worktop joints and the seal where the top meets the wall.
• Confirm the chimney or hood runs and actually vents.
• Test every socket on the worktop.
• Open corner fittings and pull outs through their full travel.
• Check edge banding on every visible edge, especially near the sink.

What should you check in bathrooms?

Run every tap and the shower for several minutes together, then check for pooling. Water should run to the drain from every part of the floor, with no flat spots where it sits.

Fill the basin and bath, then drain them and watch the speed. Flush every toilet more than once. Check the seal around the WC base and around the shower tray.

Look for damp on the wall on the other side of any wet wall, including in the adjacent room. That is where waterproofing failures show first.

Check the extractor if there is one, and confirm the vanity doors and drawers clear the basin plumbing.

What counts as a defect and what does not?

These are defects and should be fixed: doors that do not latch or that swing on their own, uneven gaps on joinery, sockets that do not work, hollow or lipped tiles, water that does not drain, damp anywhere, visible roller marks and patches, scratches on new surfaces, edge banding lifting, taps that drip, and any joinery that fouls plumbing.

These are usually not defects: very fine hairline cracks in fresh plaster as it dries, slight timber movement in the first weeks, and minor colour variation between natural stone slabs, which is inherent to the material.

These are borderline and should be raised anyway: doors that stick slightly in humid weather, drawers that need adjusting, and small paint touch ups. A serious contractor expects to return for these, because joinery settles in the first weeks of use.

What should you agree in writing?

Three things. The numbered defect list with photographs. A date for the return visit. And what happens to anything discovered in the first weeks of living there, because some defects only appear with use, particularly around drainage, door movement and drawer alignment.

Ask this before you appoint the contractor, not at handover. How a company answers the question tells you a great deal about how the project will end.

How Grains handles handover

Because Grains manufactures at its own facility on Raiwind Road and installs with its own teams, the crew that fitted your kitchen, wardrobes and doors is the crew that comes back to adjust them. Fronts and drawers settle in the first weeks of use, and adjusting them is part of the job rather than an extra visit. If you are planning a build or a finishing project, see how the process runs on our construction page or message WhatsApp +92 320 4443864 to arrange a free site visit.