How to verify a property construction update: evidence and the SPA

Prepared by the NovAsia Editorial Team

> Important. This material is educational and is not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules, rates, deadlines and terms change and depend on your situation and the specific property — verify the current details with a qualified professional (a lawyer or tax advisor) before any decision or payment.

An update is a source, not a completed conclusion

Photos, video, readiness percentages and revised dates help show what the developer reports. They do not automatically prove a contractual milestone, concealed-work quality, building safety or future handover. Start with: which exact field does this material support?

1. Record provenance

Keep the URL/file, publisher, publication date, claimed capture date, project, tower/phase and caption. A screenshot without the originating page is weaker than the source page or written confirmation.

Red flag: the same image appears with different dates or belongs to another tower.

2. Describe only what is observable

Separate:

• visible items: floors, facade, glazing, accessible common areas;
• source claims: percentage, milestone, completion date;
• unknowns: concealed systems, permits, quality and operational readiness.

Do not turn "work is under way" into "on schedule" without contractual milestones and dates.

3. Reconcile with the SPA

Locate commencement, completion, handover, grace period, milestone, notice and payment-trigger definitions. Check:

• the correct asset/phase;
• whether the stage triggers payment;
• who certifies it;
• whether a certificate, record or notice is required;
• consequences of delay or variation.

A public news item does not modify the SPA by itself.

4. Maintain a version log

Do not erase an earlier date when a new one appears; the change is material evidence.

5. Check payment linkage

Before an irreversible payment, obtain the document required by the SPA, verified payment details and the balance calculation. A photo update does not replace an invoice, notice or milestone certificate when the contract requires something else.

6. Resolve conflicts

If the website, email, salesperson and SPA give different dates:

1. preserve every version;
2. mark the field conflict;
3. request written confirmation from the obligated party;
4. identify effects on payments, GRR/buyback, handover and remedies;
5. do not sign a waiver/variation without independent review.

What to request

• dated update for the correct tower/phase;
• current contractual target and previous changes;
• evidence required for the payment milestone;
• unit/common-area variation list;
• delay consequences for payments and programmes;
• contact for the SPA-obligated party.

Limitation

This workflow organises evidence. It does not replace independent legal or engineering review and does not certify construction quality or safety.

Related: project status, delay and cancellation, contract clause library, how buying works.

Frequently asked

Does a developer photo update prove that a milestone has been met?

No. Photos, video, readiness percentages and revised dates help show what the developer reports, but they do not automatically prove a contractual milestone, concealed-work quality, building safety or future handover. Start with the question of which exact field the material actually supports. It helps to separate three things: visible items such as floors, facade, glazing and accessible common areas; source claims such as a percentage, milestone or completion date; and unknowns such as concealed systems, permits, quality and operational readiness.

What should a buyer do when the website, an email and the SPA give different dates?

Preserve every version, mark the disputed field as a conflict and request written confirmation from the obligated party. Identify separately how the discrepancy affects payments, GRR or buyback, handover and remedies, and do not sign a waiver or variation without independent review. Remember that a public news item does not modify the SPA by itself. Do not erase an earlier date once a new one appears — the change itself is material evidence, which is why a version log with sources and dates is useful.

Can an instalment be paid on the strength of a progress update?

Before an irreversible payment, obtain the document required by the SPA, verified payment details and the balance calculation. A photo update does not replace an invoice, notice or milestone certificate when the contract requires something else. Check in the SPA whether the asset or phase matches, whether the stage triggers payment, who certifies it, whether a certificate, record or notice is required, and what happens on delay or variation. It also helps to hold a contact for the SPA-obligated party.