After months — or years — of waiting, the day finally arrives: the provisional acceptance of your new-build apartment.

It is a strange kind of day. Exciting, slightly stressful, and surprisingly technical. You walk through rooms that are finally yours, yet at the same time you are inspecting them like a stranger — looking for scratches, imperfections and things that are not quite right.

For us, the provisional acceptance made everything suddenly feel real. Until that moment, the apartment had mostly existed on plans and construction photos. But walking through the finished space with the contractor, clipboard in hand, it suddenly became our home.

In Belgium, provisional acceptance is an important milestone. It formally confirms that the works are finished and starts the warranty period. But more importantly, it is your last opportunity to document problems before signing the report — and that makes it one of the most important moments in the entire process.

Looking back, we learned a lot during our acceptance visit — sometimes the easy way, sometimes the hard way. These are the things I wish I had known beforehand.

1. Add caveats if visibility is poor

One of the first things we realised is that you cannot inspect what you cannot properly see.

Floors were still dusty, windows were dirty and the sunlight disappeared earlier than expected. Some surfaces were simply impossible to judge properly.

If visibility is not good enough, make sure this is written down in the report.

I wish we had added remarks stating that:

• The floors could not be fully inspected
• The windows were too dirty to check
• Certain finishes were not clearly visible

If something cannot be checked, it should not be considered accepted. It feels like a small detail in the moment, but it can save a lot of discussion later.

2. Pay attention to the small details

During provisional acceptance, you quickly realise how much of the inspection comes down to details.

You start noticing things you would normally never pay attention to:

• A scratch on a door handle
• A slightly crooked electrical outlet
• A misaligned switch
• Silicone that is not quite neat
• A damaged corner

None of these things are dramatic on their own. But once you move in, these are the details you see every single day.

And once you notice them — you cannot unsee them.

3. Check if you actually have warm water

Some things feel too obvious to check — until they do not work.

In our case, there was no warm water during the acceptance visit. Luckily, the contractor was able to fix it immediately, which probably spared us a lot of frustration later.

It only takes a few minutes to test:

• Warm and cold water
• Shower pressure
• Toilets
• Taps
• Ventilation

It is a simple step, but an important one.

4. Check walls and floors from an angle

At first glance, our walls looked perfectly fine.

Only later did we learn that what looks acceptable straight on can look very different in natural light or from an angle.

If you stand sideways and look along a wall or floor, imperfections become much more visible — uneven plastering, slight waves, or small irregularities.

This is something we learned the hard way.

We were told that the thin plastering in the apartment was standard practice and that the finish quality was always like this. Only later, when we started painting, did we realise how rough some surfaces actually were. In the end we had to replaster parts of the apartment ourselves to achieve the finish we wanted.

If I could give one piece of advice, it would be this: trust your eyes more than reassuring words.

5. Take photos of everything

During the visit, everything happens quickly.

You move from room to room, discussing small issues, listening to explanations and trying to remember everything at the same time.

Photos became our safety net.

We photographed defects, installations, meter readings and entire rooms. Later, these photos helped us clarify discussions and check what had already been noted.

It is one of the simplest things you can do — and one of the most useful afterwards.

6. The report matters more than the conversation

After the tour, you usually sit down together to complete the acceptance report.

This turned out to be one of the most important moments of the entire visit.

Several issues we had discussed during the inspection were missing from the report. We had to go through everything again before we were comfortable signing.

It is tempting to rely on verbal promises, especially when the atmosphere is friendly.

But the only things that truly count are the things that are written down.

When we did our provisional acceptance, the kitchen had not even been installed yet.

Which meant one simple thing: we did not sign anything regarding the kitchen.

It sounds obvious, but there can be subtle pressure to move things forward anyway.

7. Take your time

Acceptance visits are often planned tightly, but rushing is the worst possible approach.

Our two-bedroom apartment took nearly three hours to inspect properly — much longer than we expected.

Working room by room helped us stay organised and prevented us from overlooking things.

It is not the moment to be quick or polite.

It is the moment to be thorough. Some even consider seeking expert help on this important day.

Final thoughts on the provisional acceptance

The provisional acceptance of a new-build apartment is an emotional milestone — but it is also a surprisingly practical one.

Almost every new-build apartment has small defects at delivery. That is normal.

What matters is that they are documented and fixed.

Looking back, our acceptance visit was not perfect. But being careful saved us from many frustrations later.

One final anecdote perfectly sums up the day.

After signing the documents, we were handed the keys and returned to the apartment together to install the lock on the front door. Only then did we discover that the dimensions were wrong. The lock did not fit.

Which meant that for the first week in our brand-new apartment, we did not even have a working front door lock.

So if there is one last piece of advice I would add, it would be this:

Do not sign anything until the lock is installed.