Standard for Property Condition Assessments: Baseline Property Condition Assessment Process

In August of 1999, the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) published a Standard E2018-99, which defined “good commercial and customary practice for conducting a baseline Property Condition Assessment (PCA).” This standard was specifically written for commercial real estate and largely intended for commercial real estate transactions. The Standard was updated in 2001 and renamed as ASTM E2018-01. The Standard was updated again in July of 2008 and renamed ASTM E2018-08.

There is now a defined protocol for due diligence building inspections. For years, there has been a well-defined standard for performing Environmental Site Assessments. This new protocol should eventually make it easier for those involved with commercial real estate transactions, as the report contents and format have been well defined.

The PCA has been divided into four steps:

   1. Perform document review (drawings, maintenance records, etc.).
   2. Perform a walkthrough survey of the property.
   3. Prepare costs for remedies recommended.
   4. Document findings and costs in a written report.

As part of the PCA, the consultant should contact the local building department and local fire department to check for building or fire code violations, and to ensure that a certificate of occupancy was issued for the building.

Recommended report contents include:

    * Opinions of probable costs only for repairs likely to exceed $3,000. These costs should be for immediate repairs (within one year) and for short-term repairs (within one to two years).
    * Estimates of remaining useful life for building components.
    * Photographs of typical building elevations, major systems and major deficiencies noted.

At Benchmark Inspection Service we follow the ASTM Standards in our services. The entire Standard is 23 pages long and available from ASTM at their website: http://www.astm.org

Download Sample Inspection Report [.pdf]