Falcon Engineers & Architects
Civil engineering, architecture, surveying and structural assessment
Pre-purchase building condition and structural assessment report
1. General details
- Client
- Withheld for privacy
- Property
- 5 marla house, Faisalabad
- Building type
- Load-bearing brick masonry, RCC roof slabs
- Floors
- Ground + first floor
- Inspected
- September 2026
- Inspected by
- Engr. M. Salman Chishti
2. Executive summary
A non-destructive engineering inspection carried out before the purchase was finalised. It covered masonry stability, sub-floor soil erosion and hollow flooring, active damp and seepage, electrical safety, termites and drainage.
Overall property condition: Requires major repairs and sub-floor rehabilitation
3. Findings and defects
| Category | What we found | Severity | Recommended action |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Sub-floor void and hollow flooring | The tapping test found hollow-sounding floors across the garage, the connecting kitchen and the next bedroom. Water leaking into the ground has washed soil out from under the floor slab. | HIGH severity | Open up the affected floor, stop the leak, backfill and compact the soil, and recast the sub-floor. |
| 2. Termites | Active termite mud tubes over door frames, wardrobes and walls. Severe internal damage to door frames. | HIGH severity | Full anti-termite chemical treatment and repair of the damaged frames. |
| 3. Electrical | Rusted, disorganised DB box. Loose wiring running open inside the false ceiling. Broken sockets with exposed live wires. | HIGH severity | Replace the DB box with a modern modular panel, run ceiling wiring in conduit and replace damaged sockets. |
| 4. DPC damp and seepage | Damp and flaking at DPC level on outer walls and skirting. Plaster spalling and peeling paint near the water pumps and upper ceilings. | HIGH severity | Remove damaged plaster, apply bituminous waterproofing and re-plaster. |
| 5. Floor and wall tiles | Laminate flooring buckling from moisture below. Tapping found several hollow, poorly bonded skirting tiles. | MEDIUM severity | Replace the warped laminate and re-bond hollow tiles with cementitious grout. |
| 6. Drainage and manholes | The outside sanitary manhole cover is broken and misaligned, so wastewater could pool into the foundation soil. | MEDIUM severity | Re-plaster the chamber walls and fit an airtight RCC cover. |
| 7. Cracks and finishing | Hairline, non-structural expansion cracks at ceiling joints. Plaster damaged around door frames. | LOW severity | Fill the cracks with flexible mesh tape and refinish the door edges. |
4. Engineer’s recommendation
The load-bearing brick walls and both RCC roof slabs are structurally sound. The house still needs serious work: the sub-floor under the garage, kitchen and bedroom has to be rebuilt, the water-damaged false ceilings near the staircase and in the first-floor kitchen replaced, and the termites and damp treated.
5. Final advice to the client
The structure is intact, but the house is not ready to move into. We advised the client to negotiate the price down to cover the repairs before completing the purchase.
