Services
Structural inspection and engineering services
Inspections, engineer's reports, second opinions, designs and certification from independent structural engineers. Every service follows one rule: find the cause first, and never sell or carry out the repair. Choose a service below, use the quick decision guide, or ask an engineer.
Overview
What services does an independent structural engineer provide?
The short answer
Three kinds of help. Inspections and reports find out what is moving, why, and how serious it is. Reviews and monitoring answer narrower questions: is this underpinning quote right, and is this crack still moving? Design and certification turn a diagnosis into a repair that any licensed contractor can build. We provide all three, and never the building work itself.
When the cause isn't known yet, start with an inspection, because the cause decides everything that follows. A quote review costs less because it's done from documents and photos, without a site visit. Monitoring, design and certification come once the cause is known.
Every service is prepared and signed by a structural engineer (Engineers Australia · RPEQ). Because we have no repair work to sell, the only thing we're paid for is getting the diagnosis right.
- Inspections and reports
- House, foundation and crack, pre-purchase and building defect reports
- Second opinions
- Underpinning quote review from your documents and photos
- Design and certification
- Underpinning designs, permit documents and stage inspections
- Monitoring
- Repeat readings that show stable, seasonal or progressive movement
- Fees
- Inspections from $450 + GST, quote reviews from $390 + GST
- Quotes
- A fixed quote within 1–2 business hours, before we start
Our services
Choose a structural engineering service
Each service page explains who it's for, what the engineer checks and what you receive. Inspections and quote reviews have a published starting fee; the rest are fixed-quoted per job.
House structural inspections
A structural engineer inspects the whole house, finds what's moving and why, and reports what, if anything, needs doing.
From $450 + GSTLearn more
Foundation & crack reports
Cracks measured and rated, the cause of the movement found, and your options set out before anyone quotes a repair.
From $450 + GSTLearn more
Pre-purchase structural inspections
Buying a house with cracks or movement? An engineer finds the cause and what a fix could involve before you commit.
From $450 + GSTLearn more
Underpinning quote review
An independent engineer's second opinion on an underpinning quote: the cause, the method, the scope and what it leaves out.
From $390 + GSTGet a second opinion
Underpinning design & certification
If underpinning is needed, we design it, prepare the permit documents, inspect the critical stages and certify the work.
Fixed quote per jobLearn more
Building defect reports
An engineer's report on structural defects: where they are, how serious they are, the likely cause and what to do. For owners, buyers and disputes.
Fixed quote per jobLearn more
Crack monitoring
Repeat readings that show whether a crack is stable, seasonal or still widening, before anyone designs a repair.
Fixed quote per jobLearn more
Engineering for contractors
Designs, permit documents, stage inspections and certification for underpinning and restumping jobs, by engineers who never compete for the work.
Fixed quote per jobFor contractors
Structural engineer fees
On-site inspections from $450 + GST and quote reviews from $390 + GST, with what's included and how we compare.
Fixed before we startSee pricingNot sure which you need?
Which structural engineering service do I need?
Work down the questions and stop at the first yes. They run from the most specific situation to the most general, so the first match is the right place to start.
Still unsure?
Choose "Not sure, please advise" on the quote form and describe what you're seeing. An engineer will recommend the right service in your fixed quote.
Are you buying the property?
You're about to sign a contract, or you're in a cooling-off period, and something looks wrong.
Yes → pre-purchase inspectionNo → go to 2Has a contractor quoted you for underpinning?
You want an independent check of the cause, the scope and the method before you sign.
Yes → quote reviewNo → go to 3Has an engineer already said a repair is needed?
The cause is known, and the repair now needs a design, permit documents and certification.
Yes → design and certificationNo → go to 4Is there a dispute, or defects in building work?
New or renovated work, a disagreement with a builder, or evidence for an insurance claim.
Yes → building defect reportNo → go to 5Do you need to know if an assessed crack is still moving?
The crack has been looked at, and the question now is whether it's stable, seasonal or growing.
Yes → crack monitoringNo → go to 6Are you seeing cracks or movement?
Cracked walls or slabs, sticking doors, sloping floors, or part of the house sinking or lifting.
Yes → foundation and crack reportNo → go to 7Do you want a general check of the structure?
No single problem, but you'd like an engineer's view of the whole house.
Yes → house structural inspectionNo → ask us
At a glance
How do our structural engineering services compare?
When each service is used, who usually orders it, what you receive and what it costs.
| Service | When | Who orders it | What you get | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| House structural inspection | A general check, or several concerns at once | Homeowners, landlords and strata owners | An on-site inspection and an engineer's report on the structure | From $450 + GST |
| Foundation and crack report | Cracks, sticking doors, sloping floors or a moving slab | Homeowners and strata owners | Cracks measured and rated against AS 2870, the likely cause, severity and options | From $450 + GST |
| Pre-purchase structural inspection | Before you buy, or during a cooling-off period | Buyers | An engineer's view of cracks, movement and footings before you commit | From $450 + GST |
| Underpinning quote review | After a contractor quotes for underpinning | Homeowners with a quote | A written second opinion from documents and photos, with no site visit | From $390 + GST |
| Underpinning design and certification | Once the cause is known and a repair is needed | Homeowners and contractors | A design, permit documents, stage inspections and certification | Fixed quote |
| Building defect report | Defects, disputes or an insurance claim | Owners, buyers, strata and insurers' customers | An independent report on the defects, their likely cause and what's needed | Fixed quote |
| Crack monitoring | When you need to know if movement is still active | Homeowners, strata and builders | Readings at set intervals, compared with the first, showing stable, seasonal or progressive movement | Fixed quote |
| Engineering for contractors | When a job needs an engineer's design or sign-off | Underpinning and restumping contractors, builders | Designs, permit documents, stage inspections and certification | Fixed quote |
Fees exclude GST. Fixed-quote services are priced per job once we understand the scope, and every fee is fixed before we start. See structural engineer fees for what's included and what changes the price.
Engineer vs repair company
Should you call an engineer or a repair company first?
An independent engineer, whenever the cause isn't known yet. A repair company's inspection is usually how it scopes and prices its own work. An engineer is paid for the diagnosis, so the advice doesn't depend on selling you anything.
The cause decides the fix. A leaking pipe, a downpipe emptying against a wall or a large tree can move a footing by changing the moisture in the soil beneath it, and fixing those is often far cheaper than underpinning. When underpinning is the right answer, the method (mass concrete, piers, screw piles or resin injection) should suit your soil and your house, not the product a company installs. Our guide to underpinning methods compared explains the differences.
It isn't engineer against contractor. Underpinning usually needs a building permit or approval with an engineer's design, so the two work together: we design and certify, and a licensed contractor of your choice builds it.
Already have a quote?
An underpinning quote review checks whether the cause was found, whether the scope and method make sense and what's missing, before you sign. Read do I need an engineer for underpinning?
A repair company's inspection
- Part of the sales process for its own work
- Tends to recommend the method it installs
- The cause may not be tested before the quote
- The company that sets the scope also sets the price
An independent engineer
- Paid for the diagnosis, not the repair
- Says so when no repair is needed
- Compares methods for your soil and your house
- Designs the fix, inspects the critical stages and certifies it
Every report
What's in every engineer's report?
Whichever service you choose, the report follows the same structure, so you, a contractor, your building surveyor or your insurer can act on it.
The concern and the scope
What you asked us to look at, what we inspected and what we couldn't reach.
Measured observations
Cracks located and measured for width, length and pattern, plus doors, windows, floors, drainage, plumbing signs, trees and site conditions.
AS 2870 crack ratings
Wall cracks rated against the damage categories in AS 2870, from Category 0 (negligible) to Category 5 (very severe).
The likely cause and severity
What is most likely moving the building, whether reactive clay, leaks, drainage, trees or fill, and how serious it is.
Clear recommendations
No action, maintenance such as fixing leaks or drainage, monitoring, further testing such as a soil or plumbing test, or a repair to be designed.
Photos and a signature
Photos of what we found, and the signature of a structural engineer (Engineers Australia · RPEQ) with the limits of the inspection stated.
See how our engineers inspect a house, or read cracks in walls: when to worry to understand the AS 2870 damage categories before you book.
Questions
Questions about our services
Still unsure? Call 07 2150 0579 and an engineer will talk it through.