Anyone A Home Inspector ?

odellconstruct

was thinking of taking a course to do home inspections and was wondering if anyone here has , i know there is lots diffrent schools some on national and some on state level, most likely be doing them on state becouse of codes ect , jus wanna hear some experiences or recommendations to any schools , thanks

ModernStyle

what you gonna inspect ?? Nobody is buying anything.

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Cole

I looked into it, but then decided against it from hearing from some other local inspectors.

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odellconstruct

eventually the market will be going back up , im sure insurance companies hire inspectors just for there report ? refinance ect . plus not a bad side job

greg24k

I took a building inspector course in the mid 90s. At the time it was a 60hr course now I think its 90 hrs. It is an open book test. I never applied for a job; you make more money as a contractor. It is a good course even if you do not go for the job. You learn allot, some things that did not make sense before, you start looking at them differently and understand why this codes are enforced. There was many contractors who took the course same time I did. I would recommend the course, to anyone who is building homes, do additions or big remodeling jobs, it helps allot.

Maybe one day when I retire I get a part time job and go out busting some chops.
Just remember one thing: "Never fight with a building inspector, fighing him is like fighting a pig in %^&*, the more you fight him the more he will enjoy it" that was the first thing our instructor told us. Other then that, do your job, do it right and you will have no problem with any inspector.
Good luck

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will575

I do a few inspections, our state doesn't have licensing for that, so it's pretty simple if you have an extremely broad base of experience, If not or if required you need the education. I would say right now you wouldn't get any business, but you would be ready if/when the market comes back. Around here inspections cost about $200. not bad if you can do 2 to 3 per day, other wise it's a good side job, if it doesn't interfere with your contracting business.

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macatawacab

First find out if licensing is required in your jurisdiction. Second, I agree with everyone else, not much to inspect.

I was a licensed GC in FL 20 years ago. FL did not license inspectors at that time. I did some inspections and was worried about my liability. Consulting with lawyer it was made clear that I was just a snapshot on a given day not a warranty. I did or did not see evidence of water infiltration, the outlets all worked or not, the water heater was xx yrs old, 200amp service, etc.

My opinion, if you are a competent licensed home builder, you are a qualified home inspector.

odellconstruct

thats why i want to do it , even if i just learnd alot more on codes ect woud be well worth it , and have something to fall back on later im not getting any younger ,who knows the next housing boom ill be a old man lol

D.Foster

I've heard that the insurance is a bear!! I know of a guy that quit because of it.

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Mitch M

I am a licensed home inspector but do not practice. I decided to get my license "just in case". At this point, I am going to keep it if I can but I probably will not do anything with it or if I do it will be pick and choose. The risk and liability are really too much to bare.

I would suggest though if you want to get some input on it, go to inspectionnews.net. There are some very good knowledgable guys on there. You can also do an archive search and find pretty much anything you need. As for schools, I can not say anything. I bought a correspondence course just for the information.

concretemasonry

The reputable national associations have a requirement that in order to be a licensed or certified member, you cannpt do any wotk on a home you have inspected and must provide mutiple names for each type of subcontractor is names are requested. This also follows through to many or the state certifications that require a certain number (50 to 200) of inspections in addition to passing a test such as the one used by ASHI.

There are some on-line groups that sell a certification, for whatever it is worth, if you pass a quick and easy simple test. The test is not where as thorough as the real association/state tests since I got 100% taking it quickly on the spur of the moment. These are geared for people that want to be a contractor and home inspector at the same time.

Home inspections are not normally related to the model building codes, but rely on evaluation, operation, safety and future expenditures and life of equipment and systems. This is in addition to the usual obvious red flags for troublesome areas where a structural engineer, electrician, roofer, plumber or HVAC should be consultd with.

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Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

Cole

You are correct, and most people do not know of this rule.

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Solrac

Yeah, I was also looking into getting the training and the license just to have and use it as a credential when selling a new addition or home remodel. I probably wouldn't advertise the Home Inspection aspect of it though. Anyone have recommendations as to where to go for training?

Rx8

I just hired a home inspector the other week, he made 250 off me, and he said he had 3 other homes to inspect the same day, doesn't sound like a shabby side job imo.

concretemasonry

I took a very good course about 10 years ago from AHIT out of the Mikwaukee area. - Great instructors in every area. They were the largest and had a great old house in Waukeshaw where courses were held that had examples of about everything you could find wrong in a house (intentional) and had about 8 or 10 furnaces in the basement for teching the inspection process and tips. The class was 6 full days. They also held classes ai other cities throuh-out the country at different times of the year.

I also took a free review class since there was an opening in one of their week long classes in Minneapolis (usually 2 or 3 times a year.

They also teach about how to run a business and market it.

Due to the decrease in construction and sales there may not be as many options.

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Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

threaderman

I recently gave a home inspector an estimate to run a gas line to a fire place.Seems he did his inspection and had no way of testing the gas appliances since the meter was pulled,and when the buyer moved in and had the gas turned back on,she discovered there was no gas to the fire place.
Since the home inspector didn't say there was a problem with the fire place,that made him liable for the mistake and he told me he had to pay for it,so I guess they take home inspections seriously here.He asked me to take it easy on him...I didn't get the bid.
On a lighter note,one of my friends is an inspector [he did my house for me],and he does very well.

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photogoat

I did the big 6 day course with ITA through Kaplan. It was a blast. I do a little of everything and now I offer inspections. I give good inspection, the course really set me up nice. But the best part is that I use the knowledge eveyday in my other work. Pricey but worth it for me, even if I don't do another inspection.

ITA tries to help out its students by offering insurance and liability. I bought ten inspections worth, I'm thinking it was around 10-20 bucks a piece. But you got buy ten at a time. It was worth it, because I can use them now or later. No yearly fees.

Renegade 1 LI

Here in NY you are required to be licensed by the state. I took the course offered by BOCES, the instructors were engineers & home inspectors who all seemed qualified to give the classes. There were 5 modules including 1 module where you went out in the field & had to complete 5 practice inspections. A few of us taking the class were contractors & the rest seemed to be retirees from non construction related fields. All I can say is most who took the course should not! be home inspectors, they will be sued. I took the class because I thought it would be a nice additional source of cash to supplement my normal income, unfourtuneately the housing market went south & I decided to wait it out & see what happens. I took & passed the state test but have not registered a business yet, the insurance is expensive so you need to be earning $ to make it worth while. In NY you can not register & get a license whithout insurance & in addition my lawyer recomend also getting E & O (errors & omission) insurance which can run 2-3k a year. So unless you are ready to hussle you are looking at approx. 10k for your first year start up costs to set the business up properly & to protect yourself from lawsuits. Personally I think for the right person it can be a profitable buisness, but it will take time to build up a customer base to the point where you can actually make a living.

concretemasonry

threaderman -

The inspector was probably not liable, but did not know it. A home inspection is a visual inspection of the home and conditions. There are certain items that cannot be operated because operating things like an old pressure valve on a water heater that could not be properly shut off after it was found to be operational is not required. Same thing for shutting off any electrical circuit where you could shut down an oxygen pump or a computer that could not be restarted properly. - There are others like operating an AC when the unit is cold, etc.

The most common problem is not being able to see basment walls because of boxes and materials stored, but a good inspector can usually spot something to warrent warning the potential owner to call a structural engineer.

For $350 per inspection you cannot absorb much liability and a good school can tell you how to operate.

The newer big market is pre-listing specifications for owners (instead of pre-sale inspections for buyers) that will be putting homes up for sale. Since the same procedures are used for all homes, it provides a cheap way of getting the house ready for sale by finding the problems that are usually missed because the owner is too familiar with the home.

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Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

MALCO.New.York

I miss BOCES, Board of Co-operational Educational Services, half day of real classes then off to the training centers. I never was a student enrolled, but I did audit the Automotive Repair classes OFTEN!

Dated MANY a Cosmetologist..The great thing was that other Chicks from other Schools were in the classes and one could get to know "New Prospects" easily.

American Chopper Co-Owner, Paul Junior is a BOCES Graduate!

In my day they had no "Home Inspection" Courses.

BOCES was where the kids who "Rode The Short Bus" also went for Special Education and Behavioral Services and the term "You are a BOCiE", meaning retarded, in the real sense, got started. It is probably only a Regional Colloquialism.

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