Snagging

Snagging is the detailed final inspection at the end of a renovation, or when you take handover of a new property, where every defect and unfinished detail is written down — a chipped tile, a door that won't close square, a paint run, a dead socket, a wobbly tap. That snag list (also called a punch list) is what the contractor works through before you sign off and release the final payment. It happens *after* the messy trades — MEP, waterproofing, tiling, joinery and painting — are finished, as the last step before handover. Doing a thorough snag yourself, or paying an independent snagging inspector, before you release that last payment is your main leverage to get things genuinely put right. The fine defects are usually a finishing and snagging job to close out.