How an 11-Month Inspection Can Save You Thousands Before Your Warranty Expires
Introduction
“New” doesn’t mean “perfect.” New homes are planned, built, supervised, and completed by humans. We’re all humans and we all make mistakes. Small misses during construction can become expensive out-of-pocket repairs after your 12-month builder warranty ends (which, btw, you’ve already paid for). An 11-month warranty inspection gives you a professional punch list while the builder is still responsible.
At Blue Canyon Home Inspections, we’ve completed over 2,500 inspections in Arizona. Here’s how an 11-month inspection protects your wallet—and your peace of mind.
1) You Catch Hidden Problems While They’re Still the Builder’s Responsibility
The first year exposes issues that don’t show up at the final walk-through: seasonal expansion, monsoon moisture, normal wear. Especially if you opted out of getting a third party to do a final build inspection. An 11-month inspection documents them before warranty day 365.
Common finds that qualify for warranty repair:
Missing/voided attic insulation → hot rooms, high bills - while performing thermal scans and attic inspections of the home, it is not uncommon to find areas where there is missing or insufficient insulation. We did a final build inspection recently where there were voids in the attic insulation and there were areas of the interior walls that were 90+ degrees, even though the AC had been running for 2 hours.
Roof flashing or unsealed penetrations → attic leaks after storms - there’s a technique to installing the vent stack flashing over the plumbing vents, on that sometimes gets installed incorrectly and no one catches it until there’s a little drip, drip, drip coming from your kitchen ceiling.
HVAC duct kinks or unbalanced airflow → constant hot/cold rooms - you might not notice that a register is blowing out a few degrees warmer, or not blowing at all. These are some of the smaller issues that need to be found and fixed during the builders warranty, otherwise they’ll present an expensive fix when you go to sell the house down the road.
Improperly Installed HVAC → loud mechanical noises during normal operation, shortens the lifespan - we’ve seen it a LOT lately where the HVAC compressor is making a loud mechanical noise during shut down. And when I say a lot, its about 60/40 right now if its going to get written up, and most of them are compressors manufactured in 2024. This can be hectic in a number of ways, as it will shorten the lifespan of your HVAC. That means having to replace the system much earlier than you’re anticipating (the average lifespan of an AC in Arizona is 10-15 years), or the home inspector will write it up when you go to sell the house, prompting the new buyers to ask for it to be replaced.
Loose/Improperly Installed Gutters or downspouts → failing/falling gutters - remember all that massive storm we just got last month? Imagine its coming down like that and shaking the windows and all of a sudden you hear a huge crash along the side of the house. You go outside, in the rain, to find that your gutter is laying in the side yard.
Plumbing defects - two of the most common defects we find is that they didn’t install a pressure regulator at the main, and that they didn’t install an expansion tank at the water heater. Both of these devices are designed to protect your plumbing system during a surge.
Electrical protection (GFCI/AFCI) missing or miswired
Pests - Its infrequent but still happens that we see termite tubes that have popped up in new build homes. Most builders have a contracted warranty with the termite company that did the final treatment, and this can give a false sense of security to the homeowner. What that warranty means is that if termites pop up in the warranty period, they will come out and treat it for free. It does NOT mean that you aren’t going to get termites within the warranty period. Every home in Arizona is going to get termites at some point, catching them early is the key.
Pro Tip: We are certified to inspect for termites and offer it as an ancillary service for an additional fee, but it is always included on the final build and 11th month inspections at no additional charge.
2) Real-World Cost Avoided (It Ranges Wildly in AZ)
We aren’t allowed to quote prices for repairs: contractors can range wildly in their pricing. That’s why we always recommend either going with a trusted vendor (give me a call and I can give you a contact that I’ve personally vetted) or calling in 6+ contractors to give quotes for the job. Reason being is 2 of them aren’t going to show up at all, 2 of them are going to give you extremely inflated quotes to “make it worth their time”, and 2 of them will hopefully give you a more realistic expectation of what the job will cost.
Our preferred method of course, is to have the builder take care of any needed repairs inside the warranty period. After all, you’ve already paid for the warranty, and it costs you an additional $0 when caught on time:
It’s very rare that we have a list of defects that aren’t more expensive than paying for the inspection many times over. And in the times that we do, the clients have a great sense of peace and security that they made the right decision (and had a good bit of luck) in choosing their home.
3) You Get a Clear, Builder-Friendly Punch List
Builders prefer specifics over vague “something feels off” messages. I had a client just the other day that wanted the builder to come back for touch ups on the interior, and the builder told him “We need a list of each room and where the touch ups are needed”. The client was just about over the required work for it and wasn’t going to press further, but I was able to add them all into my report and save him the hassle.
The builders tend to like our reports, because our reports are:
Photo-rich with arrows/annotations. No guess work for the supervisor or the crews, and ensures that none of the defects are going to get missed.
Location-specific - “NW bedroom, window #2 latch misaligned”
Written in plain language so your warranty team can act quickly
This organization speeds up approvals and reduces back-and-forth. The builder can also print the summary report out and treat it as a punch list, so they are able to hand you the list back with check marks to give you confidence that the issues were resolved.
4) Timing = Leverage
The builder has warranty claims work planned into their workflow, but the more people that all try to submit their claims at the same time, the more the crews will get backed up and be pushed to rush jobs. Getting in early gives everyone time to make sure the job gets done right and they don’t have to come back again.
Schedule at month 10–11:
Time to inspect, deliver the report, and submit claims
Time for the builder to schedule trades before day 365
Avoid the last-minute rush when everyone else calls
5) What We Inspect at 11 Months
We treat it just like any other home inspection and perform a full top-to-bottom inspection. No stone is left unturned, no window left unchecked:
Roof/Attic: tiles, flashing, penetrations, insulation levels, ventilation paths
Exterior/Drainage: grading, stucco cracks, sealants, weep screed, gates/fences
Interior: thermal scan to ensure insulation is installed correctly and check for hot spots
HVAC: temperature split, duct layout, sealing, thermostat function, ensure the components are operating correctly
Electrical: panel labeling, GFCI/AFCI, outlets/switches, fixtures
Plumbing: fixtures, traps, supply lines, water heater, visible leaks, drainage
Interior: doors/windows/locks, cabinets, drywall, garage door safety
Safety: smoke/CO detectors, handrails, anti-tip brackets, attic access
6) Mini Case Studies (East Valley)
Insulation Void Over Primary Suite – Queen Creek
Homeowner complained of a 6–8°F hotter bedroom and that their electric bill was $600+ a month in the hottest months of the summer. We found a 120 sq ft insulation gap. Builder blew in insulation—$0 to homeownerImproper Step Flashing – San Tan Valley
Water stains at the attic sheathing after monsoon. Roofing trade corrected flashing & sealed penetrations. Drywall repair coveredHVAC Return Imbalance – Queen Creek
Kinked flex and undersized return causing noise & poor cooling. Duct run replaced and system balanced
7) FAQs
Do I need this if I had a pre-close inspection?
Yes because houses settle over time. The first monsoon, soil movement, and normal use reveal new issues that would not have been present at the final build inspection.
Will this affect my warranty?
No. It helps you use what you’ve already paid for—by documenting items before expiration.
But the builder said they do a warranty walkthrough?
They do, but its a courtesy walkthrough. They look at a couple of things like and then they ask the homeowner “Have ya seen anything?” I’ve seen this question put more people on the spot than I can count, and it’s like getting a question in a job interview that you aren’t prepared for. Unless you’re writing a list of things you’ve seen over the year, your answer is most likely going to be “I think I’ve seen a couple of stucco cracks.”
Do you coordinate with the builder?
Nope. We are 100% there for the client. We will submit to you two reports with our findings: one is the full inspection report of the home, and the second is a summary report that you can easily send to the builder to use as a punch list for repairs.
How long does it take?
Most homes: 2–3 hours. We like to do our best to submit the reports to you on site, but if cell signal is spotty then they will be delivered within an hour of the inspections.
8) How to Make the Most of Your 11-Month Inspection
Find your closing date and book your inspection for week 44–48. The earlier you book the better, the normal real estate market operates on a 10 day inspection phase window so trying to book within the next few days can sometimes be difficult. If you know that you’re going to be available on a Saturday morning next November, go ahead and book it in.
Make everything accessible (attic, electrical panel, water heater, HVAC). Some of the frequent things that aren’t accessible are the gates and electrical panel being locked, or the attic access being blocked by a vehicle or stored personal items.
List any concerns you’ve noticed since move-in. I always start the inspection with “Have you noticed anything?” and we will go over any concerns you’ve seen and get them added into the report.
Attend the walkthrough if you can—ask questions in real time. We will also go over everything we found during our inspection.
Submit the report promptly to your builder’s warranty portal.
Conclusion
An 11-month inspection is a small investment that often returns hundreds to thousands in builder-covered corrections—especially in fast-growing areas like Queen Creek and San Tan Valley. You’ve already paid for the warranty, you may as well get the most out of it as you can and avoid the cost of the repairs down the road when A. something fails and now you’ve got to scramble to get a third party technician in or B. you go to sell the home and the new potential buyer’s inspector found a list of items that should have gotten caught during the warranty period.
Call to Action
Don’t let your hard spent money go to waste. You wouldn’t let your starter go out on your new vehicle and not have the dealership take care of it, don’t let your builders warranty expire and not get the same items taken care of.
Schedule your 11-Month Warranty Inspection with Blue Canyon Home Inspections today and hand your builder a clear, professional punch list—before the warranty ends.
