Some time ago I inspected a two storey home under construction. I was called because owners, a husband and wife did not like their front entry brickwork.

The wife was very vocal and kept saying she was paying good money and she wanted first quality and was not getting it.

I had a good look at the home that was at a lock up stage and yes there were some defects with brickwork articulation joints on side and rear and some wrong windows but the entry brickwork was fine. It wasn’t the best brickwork I have seen but it wasn’t bad either and looked reasonable.

All I could hear was I want first quality! I want first quality!

I had the look at the contract drawings and then asked for specification. That produced a blank stare. What’s a specification?

I had to explain to her that that was a document that communicated to the builder what was required and how to do it “a recepe for construction”

Then I had to explain to her that how is the builder to know what she wanted if there was no specification to tell him, she said she assumed builder would know.

Then I told her that in absence of a specification she was not entitled to anything other than minimum standard or a display home standard (there was no display home. That did not go down well.

Then I offered analogy, she was paying for a Holden Commodore but now wanted a Mercedes Benz for the same price. That did not go down well either.

Finally I offered her a solution. She could get first quality if she were to instruct the builder to demolish brickwork, get his best bricklayer and rebuild in first quality and pay for it. That went down even worse.

She dropped her lolly in a language I could not understand and I never heard from them again.

The moral of this story is that quality in construction is no accident and starts with clear communication to the builder of what you want so that he can allow for it in his price.
Don’t assume anything for you will become disappointed.