Sections and groups

The structure of a template is built from sections and groups. Getting these right is the foundation of a good template — they determine how a report is organized and how easy it is for both the inspector and the customer to navigate.

Sections

A section is the top level of a template — the major categories of an inspection. Common sections include:

• Roofing

• Electrical

• Plumbing

• Heating & Cooling

• Interior

• Exterior

• Attic

• Foundation

Every report built from the template will have these sections. The inspector works through them one by one in the report editor.

Section types

Sections have a type that controls how they behave in the report:

• Permanent — always present in the report, cannot be removed. Use for sections that must always appear (General Information, Summary).

• System — a section where the inspector adds one or more system instances (equipment items). For example, under Heating & Cooling the inspector adds each piece of HVAC equipment found at the property.

• Room — a section where the inspector adds room instances (Bedrooms, Bathrooms). Each room gets its own set of inspection items.

• General Info — a section that collects general property information rather than inspectable items.

Adding a section

In the template editor, click + Add Section at the bottom of the structure tree. Give it a name and choose the section type.

Groups

A group is a container inside a section that organizes related items together. Groups help when a section has a large number of items that fall into natural subcategories.

For example, inside an Exterior section you might have groups:

• Siding & Cladding

• Windows & Doors

• Driveway & Walkways

• Decks & Balconies

Each group holds the specific inspection items (questions, deficiencies, narratives) for that subcategory.

When to use groups

Not every section needs groups. If a section has only a handful of items, skip the groups and put the items directly in the section. Groups add organizational value when there are enough items that the inspector would benefit from seeing them broken into labeled chunks.

Folder groups vs. system groups

• Folder group — purely organizational. Items inside a folder group appear in sequence in the report. The group label is shown as a heading.

• System group — represents a type of equipment. The inspector can add multiple instances of this group (for example, multiple electrical panels). Each instance is evaluated separately.

Use system groups for anything where there might be more than one instance at a given property.