How important is snag list engineer for new build?

You'll most likely get varying opinions here with some suggest getting in a family member/friend with high attention to detail to getting the best engineer possible.

My own personal view, which is based on my experience with a new build is that you should try to get the best engineer you can find for this. Decorating issues are a lot quicker and cheaper to fix than ill fitting windows, insulation issues structural issues etc. Technically none of these should arise as an engineer will have signed off on the property and you will be covered for having them rectified - however my own experience of this is very different.

For a new build, you don't need an engineer as such, you need someone who is good at doing snagging.

For an older building that may have structural issues, i.e. something might fall down, you need an engineer.

For a building that may have multiple, non-structural issues, you need a building surveyor.

As the previous two posts have said, you don't need an engineer as such for new builds, you need someone with experience snagging.

While I have mates who could have done a decent job, we got a snagger in to our new build in early Dec and we felt it was well worth the money (€250). I went up to view the house at the same time as the snagger and as you would expect, they caught a lot more things than I did. Not only that, but he knew where to draw the line between what is a) acceptable but could be better and b) what is unacceptable - for example he asked for the builders to come up to the house and called out the grouting in our bathroom tiling as botched and unacceptable, and ultimately the builder had to arrange for it all to be redone. The snagger did all this from the viewpoint of representing me as his client, not taking any excuses from the builders etc. A snagger will know where a builder has cut corners whereas I wouldn't have a clue.

The final snag list is then coming from a professional and I do feel that the builders will treat that with a bit more respect than a list drawn up by say myself. This is not to say that my builders were cowboys, but they'll happily leave every little cosmetic change alone if they're not called out.

You then have the option for the same snagger to recheck that all of the items have been fixed, or you could do this yourself. Given the service we were provided originally, we got the same guy back for €120.

Yes you're correct, I might have been confusing the snagging with the valuation required for the mortgage, I think the bank will only accept a valuation from some property agents

"2) For that premium, you are getting a new A rated house which you will have no problems with for a number of years."

Like many things, most problems with a building come to light in the first year after construction as things are used for the first time, and things dry out, settle and are exposed to the weather. The saving grace is that you can usually call on the builder / developer to fix them.