Commercial Property Inspection Checklist: A Guide for Australian Property Managers

A retail strip owner rings to ask when the fire gear was last serviced. The answer sits in three inboxes and a contractor’s ute. My commercial property inspection checklist puts the building, the tenancies and the service records in one place. Copy it into your own app, then read on for who holds each duty and some of the dates the law sets.

The Commercial Property Inspection Checklist, Area by Area

A routine commercial inspection is a visual check by the property manager. It records the state of the building and whether each lease is being kept. It also checks that the service records are up to date. It is not a building report, a fire safety assessment or an electrical test.

My Hey Tiff episode on routine inspections gives the order. It starts outside: “take a look at the roof, all of the outdoor areas”. Then, “once you’ve done all the external areas, move on inside”. That episode covered rental homes, but the order suits a commercial site too.

My book is From Stress to Success in Property Management. In it, I describe the property managers I have trained: “From commercial to holiday, residential and onsite management”. The checklist changes with the building. The habit of using it does not.

Three rules come before the list:

• Stay safe: Check by sight from a safe place. Do not climb onto a roof, open a switchboard or enter a plant room unless you are trained and cleared to
• Date it: Note the date on every service record you look at
• Name the party: Where the lease says who maintains an item, note whether that is the owner or the tenant

Give each line one of four ratings:

• Good: No action needed
• Attention Required: Needs a repair or a record, with a photo and a short note
• Urgent: A safety or legal risk to make safe and report to the owner that day
• Not Inspected: Could not be seen or reached, with the reason noted

Site, Grounds and Car Park

• Paths, ramps and car park free of trip hazards and pooling water
• Line marking and accessible parking bays clear
• Accessible paths of travel free of stock, bins and signs
• Outside lights, bollards and fences intact
• Gates and roller doors sitting on their tracks
• Any damaged gate out of service, signed and blocked off until a competent person repairs it
• Trees and garden beds clear of building and boundary
• Bin and loading areas tidy, with access clear

Roof, Gutters and Drainage

• Roof viewed from the ground or a safe point for lifted sheets, cracked tiles or rust
• Gutters and downpipes viewed from the ground for overflow, rust or sagging
• Stormwater pits and grates clear of debris
• Ceilings below the roofline free of new water stains
• Roofer’s last report on file. Roof access left to the roofer

Walls, Facade and Entries

• Render, cladding and brickwork free of new cracks or loose sections
• Sealant around windows and doors intact
• Entry doors, automatic openers and shutters working
• Signs fixed firmly and lit as designed

Common Areas and Amenities

• Foyers, corridors and stairs clean, lit and free of stored goods
• Floor coverings free of lifting edges or damage
• Toilets and kitchens clean, stocked and free of leaks
• Cleaning done to the contract scope

Inside Each Tenancy

• Premises used as the lease permits
• Fit-out changes and signs matched against the owner’s written approval
• Condition compared with the condition report and the last inspection
• Exits and fire equipment inside the tenancy clear of stock
• Items the lease makes the tenant service, such as air conditioning, backed by a service record
• Tenant’s insurance certificate on file and in date, where the lease requires one
• Tenant asked about repairs, with anything raised noted

Building Services and Safety Records to Check

This half of the commercial property inspection checklist is about records as much as condition. For each service, look at what you can see. Then find the record that shows who serviced or tested it and when.

My Hey Tiff episode on facilities management lists its key functions. One is “ensuring that buildings adhere to health and safety standards”. Records are how you track that.

For commercial clients, we run a desk audit each month. It covers two of these records: fire and air conditioning compliance. It checks the paperwork as your manager directs. The testing stays with your specialists.

Air Conditioning and Ventilation

• Units running, with no unusual noise, smell or leaks
• Vents and grilles free of dust build-up
• Service log up to date for each unit
• Cooling tower records on file, where the site has one

Electrical

• Switchboard doors closed, with clear access in front
• No exposed wiring, damaged outlets or overloaded power boards
• Safety switch test record on file, with its date
• Lights in common areas working
• Exit signs in place and undamaged
• Emergency lighting test log on file

Plumbing and Trade Waste

• Visible pipework free of leaks, rust and damp stains
• Hot water units free of leaks
• Backflow device test report on file and in date
• Grease trap pump-out record up to date for food tenancies
• Kitchen exhaust cleaning record on file, where a tenant cooks

Lifts and Plant

• Lift registration current, where the state requires it
• Service logbook entries up to date
• No open defect or out-of-service notices
• Plant room doors locked, with nothing stored against them

Fire and Life Safety

• Extinguishers and fire blankets in place, easy to reach and tagged in date
• Hose reels and hydrants clear of obstructions
• Exit paths clear
• Fire doors closing fully and not propped open
• Evacuation diagrams on display, where required
• Current fire safety statement on display, where the state requires it
• Fire panel showing no faults

Hazards and Registers

• Asbestos register kept at the site, where one is required, with its last review date
• Asbestos management plan on file, where one is required
• Pest service log up to date, with no signs of activity
• No mould, musty smells or rust on steelwork
• Security, access control and cameras working
• Key register matched to the keys held
• Each hazard a tenant has raised since the last visit closed out or given a due date

Who Checks, Who Tests and Who Holds the Duty

Three roles meet on a commercial site. The third, the duty holder, can fall on more than one party:

• Property manager: Visits the site and records what can be seen. Checks each service record is in date. Reports to the owner
• Specialist: The competent or accredited person each rule calls for. Tests the system and signs the record
• Duty holder: Whoever the law names. This can be the owner, the occupier, the tenant or the manager

My Hey Tiff episode on compliance lists five steps to protect your business. This checklist serves the third step. It is two words long: “Document everything.”

For property managers, record what you saw and no more. Write “extinguisher tag dated March 2026”, not “extinguisher compliant”. You saw a tag. You did not test the extinguisher.

The Duty Can Sit With More Than One Party

In New South Wales, the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 puts a duty on a business that manages or controls a workplace. The duty applies whether that control is in whole or in part. The business must ensure the workplace is without risks to health and safety, so far as is reasonably practicable. The same goes for the ways in and out.

The model work health and safety laws are in place everywhere except Victoria, with some local changes. Safe Work Australia lists the principles behind duties under them. More than one person can hold the same duty at once. A duty cannot be transferred to another person.

Victoria has its own law. Section 26 of its Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 covers anyone who manages or controls a workplace to any extent. It puts a like duty on them for the matters they control.

In 2024, SafeWork NSW prosecuted an owners corporation over a 2020 death at an industrial site. A damaged entry gate fell and killed a worker. The court fined the owners corporation $225,000.

The owners corporation had an agreement with a strata managing agent. The judgment records that it gave the agent complete authority to effect repairs. The agent was later convicted too. Its fine was $150,000.

The gate had been damaged eight days before it fell. A repair was approved the next day. But the judgment records that the gate was not taken out of service while it waited.

A management agreement that gives you control of repairs may bring a duty with it. And booking a repair does not make a hazard safe.

Where the hazard is a damaged item, take two steps on the day. First, have its use stopped, a sign put up and the area closed off. Then book the trade and tell the owner.

Fire Safety Duties Change by State

Fire safety law names its duty holder state by state. In New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, the yearly fire safety record is the building owner’s to arrange. See the table below.

Queensland uses a wider word: occupier. Who is that? Its fire department names an owner, business, individual or body corporate involved in occupying, leasing or managing a building. If your business manages the building, the duty may reach you as well as the owner.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Ask your own solicitor how each duty falls on your agency.

How Often to Inspect a Commercial Property

Commercial inspections do not run on one national timetable. For your own visits, three things set the rhythm:

• The lease: Usually sets when and how you can enter each tenancy
• The management agreement: Sets what the owner pays you to inspect and report
• The compliance dates: Set by law, the regulator or a service contract for each building

What does a managing agent do? Business Queensland notes that the duties are those agreed with the landlord. They might include conducting inspections. So put the cycle in writing.

My Hey Tiff episode on commercial fees has a line for owners. I told them to “have a clear understanding with your property manager on what’s included”. The inspection cycle belongs in it.

Dates the Law or the Regulator Sets

Some dates are not yours to choose. The table below is a sample. Each row was checked against its source in October 2026.

In Victoria, regulation 223 sets the anniversary date. It is the earlier of two dates. One is the first occupancy permit, or change to one, that called for an essential safety measure. The other is the first maintenance determination that did.

In Victoria, a building built before 1 July 1994 can have a different date. That date is for measures not covered by an occupancy permit or maintenance determination. Those are reported within 28 days before 13 June each year.

In New South Wales, emergency exit lighting sits outside AS 1851-2012. It is kept to the fire safety schedule or the original design.

The table is not the full list for any state. It leaves out Western Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory. Laws change, so check the source before you rely on a date.

The table leaves out service intervals. Find those in the standard, the maker’s manual and the service contract.

Each date belongs in one register for each building. Put the duty holder beside it. The inspection is where you check the paper against the site.

Entry, Notice and the Lease

A commercial tenant holds the premises under a lease. So start with the entry clause. Business Tasmania notes that the lease sets out the rights and responsibilities of the tenant and the landlord. Look for who may enter, why, at what hours and with how much notice.

My routine inspections episode starts the same way. Its first step is to “review the lease agreement”. My guide to the commercial lease agreement covers the other key terms, such as permitted use and make good.

Do not borrow the residential notice period. Read each lease and record its entry clause in your software. This guide does not cover what each state’s lease laws may add, so ask the owner’s solicitor where a lease is silent or unclear.

Some commercial buildings also include residential premises. A flat above a shop is one case. Where the home is let on its own residential tenancy agreement, the state’s rules for rental homes apply.

Take a Victorian property with a shop and a separate living area. The living space falls under the Residential Tenancies Act 1997. Each state and territory sets its own notice periods and limits. I cover all eight in my guide to routine inspection notice periods.

Before and After the Visit

The visit is the middle step. The work before and after it turns a commercial property inspection checklist into action.

Before You Arrive

Do five things before you set out.

• Last report: Open the last inspection report and list what was flagged
• Work orders: Check which repairs were done and which are still open
• Register: Pull the compliance register and note each date due before the next visit
• Lease terms: Note the entry clause, permitted use and approved fit-out for each tenancy
• Notices: Send each tenant the notice their lease calls for

After the Visit: The Commercial Property Inspection Report

What does the owner need? In my episode on routine inspections, I listed “maintenance recommendations and also a timeline”. A commercial report adds one more part. It is the compliance status.

Give the owner a report in three parts.

• Urgent items: What needs action now. What you have done and what you need approved
• Budget items: Attention required repairs and renewals for the owner to plan for
• Compliance status: Each record you checked, its date and what falls due next. Any line marked Not Inspected

Each finding then becomes a work order with a photo, a rating and a due date. My book has a rule for the follow-up. I call it Double Your Time. “If you have thirty minutes allocated to follow up maintenance work orders, then plan for sixty minutes.”

Tie Each Inspection Back to the Condition Report

The first condition report is your baseline. Business Queensland says a tenant will generally be required to leave the premises in the condition they were in when the lease began. That is known as make good. My guide to the commercial property condition report has more.

Western Australia has advice on this. Its Small Business Development Corporation advises both sides to accept a condition report with photos. Each routine report adds to that record. At lease end, you can show what changed and when.

The Inspection Admin an Assistant Can Run

A commercial inspection has two parts: the visit and the desk work behind it. The visit needs your property manager on site. Much of the desk work does not.

Our service list for commercial work has a group for maintenance. It covers entry notices for that work. It also covers three kinds of compliance. They are essential service and fire, air conditioning and insurance.

The assistant tracks each record and chases each date. Your team and its specialists do the work on site. Our commercial maintenance coordination support page sets out that split.

A PMVA assistant can do the desk work inside your software. Your property manager directs it:

• Scheduling: Building the inspection run and the list of dates for your team to confirm
• Notices: Drafting entry notices from each lease for your manager to approve and send
• Reports: Typing up your manager’s notes and photos into the owner report in your template
• Registers: Updating the compliance register and asking contractors for missing records
• Work orders: Raising the work orders your team approves. Tracking each one until it is closed

These stay with your agency and its specialists:

• The visit: Your property manager walks the site and makes every call on it
• Decisions: Repairs, spend, breaches and legal notices stay with your team
• Testing: Your specialists test each system and sign the test record
• The duty: Legal duties stay where each law puts them

I saw how much admin can move with Phil Jones. He is Principal of Propel Realty in Brisbane. His agency has both residential and commercial properties. Phil outsources more than 20 processes to his PMVA assistant.

Those 20-plus processes produce over 300 daily and monthly tasks. His case study covers his admin as a whole. It does not single out inspections. In his words, “PMVA’s systems, structure and support is beyond anything that I’ve experienced before in a company”.

A checklist on its own does not make a team consistent. I saw this with Sarah. She heads Property Management for a large Canberra agency. Her case study is about residential leasing.

In her video, she named the risk: “Everyone will read a checklist a different way.”

Her property managers changed over time. Even so, she found that “our audits, our inspections, everything just keeps happening on in the background”. On our side, that means the admin around the inspections. It does not mean the visits.

Want more detail first? See our commercial back-office support. We also have facilities management support for commercial sites. Or book a strategy session to talk it through.

Frequently Asked Questions

One List, One Scale, One Record

A commercial property inspection checklist earns its keep when your whole team uses it the same way. The visit stays with your property manager. Much of the desk work after it can be handed over, under your direction. Book a strategy session and we will work through which parts could move.