A Guide to Construction Quality Control in Real Estate

“Measure twice, cut once.” 

It’s a classic adage that’s even more relevant when developing residential properties.

The only problem is that “measuring twice” can mean skyrocketing costs — so it’s not always feasible to implement. 

Yet, cutting corners on large-scale, multi-unit construction and development projects could lead to situations like poorly installed wiring—which, in turn, could delay projects and increase costs later on when trades need to be brought back post-move-in to correct. 

So, the solution may not be to measure “twice” but to measure earlier. 

Taking a proactive approach to quality management, where issues are addressed early in the construction and development phase, ensures these situations can be addressed. In contrast, the construction team is still on-site. 

Early (and ongoing) construction quality control processes are also key to meeting project timelines, keeping your clients happy, and ensuring that homebuyers are safe — all of which secure your reputation as a trustworthy and strategic real estate developer.

In this article, we’ll discuss the ins and outs of construction quality control, the steps you need to take to deliver residential projects on time and on budget, and the assets and tools you can use to meet these goals.

What is construction quality control?

Let’s make sure we’re on the same page.

Construction quality control is the process of ensuring deliverables meet specified standards and guidelines established by your client. It also entails meeting building codes. If these standards and codes aren’t met, a developer must address the issue right up front.

There are two aspects of construction quality: Quality assurance and quality control. Quality assurance establishes quality management expectations, while quality control refers to the procedures to achieve them. 

Both priorities — QA and QC — work best if developers, construction managers, and site operators take a proactive quality management approach.

Here are just a few of the advantages granted by proactive quality management:

• Cost savings: Mistakes are inevitable in construction projects. However, addressing issues early on is far more cost-effective to avoid costly rework later. 

• Increased client satisfaction: Meeting all expectations can increase client satisfaction, boost your company’s reputation, and generate repeat business.

• Improved safety: Regularly conducting inspections and adhering to quality standards helps create a safer environment for workers and future occupants.

• Reduced legal risks: Delivering projects that aren’t up to code could expose your business to legal issues. Proactive quality management can mitigate these risks.

• Better resource management: Finally, effective quality control can help you reduce material wastage and improve resource utilization.

In short, construction quality control prevents defects from obtaining approvals, reduces expensive rework, and improves overall quality.

Now, let’s look at how you can achieve greater project success with effective construction quality control and management.

A guide to conducting construction quality control

The most dire issues affecting construction quality trace back to a lack of communication, misalignment between teams, and poor supervision.

Here’s how to address these issues and maintain high standards throughout a project.

1. Define quality criteria

Developers must ensure that the final deliverables meet client expectations and building codes.

Incorporate standards like the National Masters Specification (NMS) into your quality control process. This is an industry-standard for communicating and organizing construction specifications. 

Here’s an example of quality control specifications for concrete work:

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By defining clear standards as your initializing step, you can keep all stakeholders on the same page about what “quality” means. You can also use these documents to compare project specifications and identify errors or quality issues during inspections. 

Once you’ve established quality criteria, share the document with everyone involved, including project managers and contractors. 

2. Plan your inspections

Inspections are an integral component of a construction quality management plan. They ensure that completed work satisfies all quality criteria and other requirements specified by stakeholders.

Start with an inspection plan. It should outline what you’ll inspect and what an acceptable result looks like. Adjust the frequency of inspections based on project size, risk level, and the various phases of construction inspection progress.

Designate a quality control officer to conduct inspections. This individual will be responsible for performing inspections and documenting deficiencies.

3. Develop an inspection checklist

Inspection checklists are less about cutting out overwhelm and more about maintaining alignment.

A checklist can help you stay organized and track your next steps when overseeing quality control on a construction project — but it can also help you, in an actionable and detailed way, ensure that requirements around those building codes and zoning permits you took pains to acquire are actually met.

The Pre-Delivery Inspection (PDI) checklist is a great example of building in (no pun intended) alignment through construction assets and processes. In this case, the PDI is a walkthrough that builders must conduct before handing over the keys to a buyer. 

Here’s one part of a PDI inspection checklist:

You can see how the actionable language directs walkthrough inspections but also highlights the various details and areas that will need attending to for a successful pre-delivery inspection 

And since some projects will have distinct quality standards over others, developers can use this asset to closely align, even communicate, with contractors and analyze historical data to identify common issues that can further expand checklists (and help seal up those issues).

For developers building net zero homes, inspection checklists should account for additional criteria, like energy performance, airtightness, and renewable energy integration. Using tools like RYZ, developers can create tailored checklists to ensure these homes meet both quality and sustainability standards.

Using a solution like RYZ, developers can create digital checklists that they share with on-site construction teams and project managers.

This will help you organize and centralize your tasks in one place.

4. Conduct inspections

The last thing you want is to hand over a project filled with deficiencies. It damages your reputation, leads to more warranty claims, and increases project costs. 

Addressing issues early on prevents them from becoming bigger and more costly problems later. Inspectors should use checklists and document their findings. They should also inform project managers during their inspections and notify them of any issues.

5. Address construction deficiencies

If certain jobs don’t meet established quality standards or acceptance criteria, you must take corrective action to prevent further delays.

Follow these steps to track and address deficiencies:  

1. Capture deficiencies: Document and categorize the issue. Write a clear description of the issue and attach photos.

2. Assign trades: Determine the right trade professionals. For example, if you’ve identified an electrical wiring issue, you’ll want to hire an experienced electrician.

3. Request a service date: Contact a professional and request a service date. Ideally, you’ll work with someone who has experience with your issue. 

4. Send work orders: Once you confirm service dates, send over the work orders. Be sure to include all the relevant details along with clear descriptions.

5. Close the work order: Confirm that the completed task meets quality standards. Then, pay the trade professional and close the work order.

   
   

6. Confirm acceptance and document the PDI

Once you perform inspections and fix any deficiencies, confirm acceptance with the client and document the PDI.

At the end of a PDI, the homeowner reviews any logged deficiencies noted during the walkthrough with the builder. They sign off on this list to confirm that the conditions recorded — such as incomplete, damaged, or non-operational items — existed before moving in.

After signing, the homeowner typically receives a summary of the PDI report, a reference for any warranty or service requests related to these items. This document is essential, as it provides a formal record of the home’s condition before occupancy, protecting both the homeowner and the builder.

Tools like RYZ support these types of construction quality control operations. Built natively on the Salesforce platform, RYZ is ideal for real estate developers who need to make every aspect of their process visible, trackable, and simplified through automation — for internal teams and external customers. 

To streamline the pre-delivery inspection phase, real estate developers can use RYZ’s purpose-built digital inspection process. This process allows buyers or inspectors to log deficiencies during a PDI, followed by a buyer sign-off.

3 tips to ensure construction quality control

Your reputation is on the line with every project you deliver. 

Follow these construction quality control best practices to ensure successful outcomes. 

#1: Provide ongoing training to your team

Companies can do more to support their workers’ education. 

An estimated 76% of employees believe their training is relevant to their work, while 68% think it suits their roles. Over half (55%) say they need more training to perform their jobs more effectively.

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Construction techniques and quality management practices constantly evolve. Provide ongoing training to your team to stay on top of these changes. Doing so can also improve the overall construction quality of your projects and help you retain more of your team.

#2: Use the right construction quality control tools

Tracking all the moving parts in a construction project requires powerful coordination and advanced trackability.

Consider construction deficiency tracking (and the logs that accompany this priority). Developers must capture issues, assign the right trades, track work orders, and maintain thorough records. 

However, relying on spreadsheets and emails to track and perform these steps can lead to details falling through the cracks. Instead of a coherent log of current issues and their statuses, you’re likely to end up with a confusing list that reduces visibility instead of enhancing it and takes an inordinate amount of time to administer. 

This is exactly why a solution like RYZ could transform how your construction quality control processes work. Here are a few ways developers can use RYZ’s features to simplify and streamline construction quality:

• Create digital checklists for inspections

• Automate task assignments

• Capture communications with stakeholders

• Generate reports to track progress

• Maintain records to ensure compliance

That’s not all.

Warranty teams can access clear insights and track key metrics, such as:

• Tarion deficiencies by repair due date

• Deficiencies awaiting trade assignment

• Service date turnaround times

• Work order completion rates

• Average days to close deficiencies by trade 

And more.

Tracking these metrics can reveal potential bottlenecks and help warranty teams operate efficiently. For example, certain trades with longer turnaround times may indicate that you need more resources in those areas.

With these benefits, it’s no surprise that more than 8 in 10 companies believe the right technologies can deliver massive cost savings and make them more competitive.

#3: Review and revise your construction quality control processes

Once you’ve addressed a deficiency, take a step back and analyze it. 

What caused the issue in the first place, and how can you prevent similar occurrences in the future? Use the 5 Whys framework to get to the root cause of an issue. Be sure to involve the relevant trade professionals in this process and get their feedback.

When you’ve finished reviewing, update your inspection checklist accordingly. Then, communicate new changes, such as quality requirements, to your team so they know what to expect on future projects.

Track deficiencies like a pro using RYZ

Effective quality management ensures your work meets expectations, minimizes costly rework, and bolsters your reputation as a reliable builder. But to maintain high-quality standards across your projects, you need the right tools. 

This is where RYZ’s all-in-one platform comes in. 

For robust and reliable construction quality control, rely on RYZ to help you:

• Conduct inspections with digital tools and capture e-signatures for a seamless move-in experience

• Assign trades to address any deficiencies identified during inspections or reported by homeowners

• Manage all warranty service requests, track real-time updates, and verify completed work with before-and-after photos

RYZ’s purpose-built CRM platform harnesses specialized tools crafted for real estate developers. From lead to warranty, this “all-in-one” enables developers to ensure quality standards across projects without reinventing the wheel. Want to see it in action? Book a demo today.