How to Write a Snag List Your Builder Will Actually Act On
What belongs in a handover snag list, how to structure it so a builder's site team can work from it, severity grading, timing, and the mistakes that get lists ignored.
Updated · 6 min read · by HomeGyan certified engineers
The short answer
- A snag list is a work instruction, not a complaint. Its job is to let a site supervisor find and fix each item without calling you.
- Every entry needs four things: exact location, what is wrong, a photograph, and a severity. Entries missing location are the ones that never get done.
- Grade severity honestly. A list where everything is critical gets triaged by the builder rather than by you.
- Raise it before signing possession. After signing, the same list becomes a request rather than a condition.
- Keep the list numbered and never renumber it. The numbers become the shared reference through re-inspection.
The structure that works
Builders act on lists their site team can work from. The format below is the one that survives contact with an actual supervisor walking the flat with a printout.
| Column | Why it is there |
|---|---|
| # | A stable reference number. Never reused, never renumbered. |
| Location | Room and position — "Master bedroom, wall shared with bathroom, at skirting". Not just "bedroom". |
| Observation | What is wrong, factually. "Hairline crack, ~300mm, vertical" rather than "bad plastering". |
| Severity | Critical / Major / Minor. Drives the order of work. |
| Photo | One wide shot for context, one close-up for detail. |
| Status | Open / Rectified / Verified. Updated at re-inspection, not before. |
Grading severity without crying wolf
- Critical — affects safety, structure or habitability. No earthing at a socket, a live electrical hazard, water entering the flat, a non-functioning fire provision.
- Major — will cost real money or worsen if left. Waterproofing failure, plumbing leaks, drainage falling the wrong way, cracked structural members.
- Minor — finish and cosmetic. Paint runs, tile chips, misaligned door hardware, patchy grouting.
- The temptation is to mark everything critical to force action. It backfires: the builder stops trusting the grading and triages the whole list themselves.
What people leave out and regret
- Anything above eye level. Ceilings, high wall sections and the tops of window frames are where water damage starts and where lists are thinnest.
- Services testing. Run every tap, flush every WC, test every socket, operate every switch, run the geyser. A visual check misses all of it.
- Drainage falls. Pour water on bathroom and balcony floors and watch where it goes. Standing water at handover becomes seepage later.
- Doors and windows in their operating range. Open and close everything fully — misalignment shows in operation, not appearance.
- The electrical distribution board. Check labelling, RCB operation and earthing continuity.
- Concealed moisture, which by definition is invisible. This is the item a visual snag list structurally cannot cover.
Timing, and why it decides the outcome
The strongest moment is after the builder declares the unit ready but before you sign the possession letter. At that point rectification is a condition of handover.
After signing, the same defects are still covered by the five-year workmanship liability under RERA Section 14(3), but the dynamic changes: you are now asking a builder to return to a unit they consider closed, and the burden of showing the defect existed at handover shifts toward you.
That is the entire argument for a dated independent record made before signing.
Re-inspection: the step most lists skip
A snag list without a verification pass is a list of promises. The builder marks items rectified; nobody independently confirms it.
Re-inspection works from the original numbering, changing each item to Rectified or leaving it Open with a note. Items that were closed cosmetically — a stain painted over rather than the ingress fixed — are found at this stage and nowhere else.
Frequently asked questions
How many items should a snag list have?
For a new Bangalore apartment, a thorough list commonly runs to several dozen items, most of them minor. A list with five items usually means the inspection was not thorough rather than that the flat is flawless.
Should I refuse possession until everything is fixed?
That depends on what is outstanding and on your agreement, and it is a decision with financial consequences — possession often triggers loan disbursement and maintenance liability. A common middle path is to accept possession with the open items recorded and acknowledged in writing by the builder.
Can I write a snag list myself?
Yes, and for cosmetic items a careful owner does it well. The limits are instrumentation and knowing where to look: earthing continuity, drainage falls, concealed moisture and waterproofing integrity are not visible, and they are where the expensive defects live.
Does the builder have to accept my list?
They are not obliged to agree with every item, but workmanship defects reported within five years of possession fall under their rectification obligation regardless of whether they are pleased about it. Disputed items are where photographic and instrumented evidence decides the matter.
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