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They hire from the architecture and relevant engineering professions. They typically pay for inspection certifications as well, such as commercial roofing, water proofing, flashing installation, etc. It was an ok gig, but you're on the road all the time and there are a lot of times when the issues you find just get covered up after money exchanges hands. The price of a home inspection varies from state to state but the national average is $324 per inspection.
Part-time home inspections are the best way to make extra cash. I think the successful guys all have software on an ipad or at least a paper form they check off. That way they don't have to type up so much crap each time. Every time I've bought a home I've gotten an inspector even though I knew what I was looking at.
Home Inspector Jobs & Careers
While home inspectors generally focus on the structure, roof, and HVAC, electrical, and plumbing systems of a home, they may also offer secondary inspections—usually for an additional expense. These services commonly include mold, termite, and radon inspections. Another role home inspectors perform is for property insurance companies. Many property insurance companies require a home inspection to be completed before they will insure a home. The results of the home inspection could result in higher premiums or a rejection of coverage if major issues are discovered. Inspection fees typically range from $250 to $350 for a moderately sized home .
Many employees later opt to go into business for themselves as they grow their families or as part of their retirement planning, and the mentorship you can get as an employee will only aid in your future success. Home inspectors are tasked with examining the condition of residential and commercial properties, from insulation to foundation and more. As a home inspector, you will look at plumbing, electrical systems, heating setups, chimneys, and more. You will then report the findings as necessary to help people make informed decisions about buying or selling a property.
A Day in the Life
The price of a home inspection is up to you, making part-time home inspection a no-brainer; for just a couple hours of work, you can be 3, even 4, digits in the black. Remember, as a trained and skilled home inspector, you have a set of ethical standards you need to uphold. Your inspection report is an objective opinion about the condition and safety of a home.
Over time, you’ll connect with more referral sources and begin to fill your schedule with home inspections and can feel confident making the change to your home inspection business full time. New home inspectors need to go through training – even if your state doesn’t require it. I would also highly recommend doing field training with an instructor. The opportunity to practice real home inspections, report writing, and client communication at real homes, alongside an instructor, is invaluable. It will lay a strong foundation for the home inspection process and better prepare you to start out on your own when you’re ready. Just as it is with real estate agents, mortgage loan officers, insurance agents, and any service-based jobs – there’s a lot of competition in home inspection.
Pros and Cons of Being a Home Inspector
So lets say the goal is 6hrs of work each @ 1k that's ~ 150 an hr! The second advantage to being a home inspector is being able to start off on the path you want, such as becoming an employee at a large firm, working for a smaller firm, or working for yourself. You get to choose if you want to start big or small in this industry and all options pay a decent amount. If you decide to start off owning your business, then you can decide to work only weekends or a few days a week while you work a part-time job, or you can decide to dive right into a full-time career.
Based on the latest jobs data nationwide, Home Inspector's can make an average annual salary of $60,030, or $29 per hour. On the lower end, they can make $44,490 or $21 per hour, perhaps when just starting out or based on the state you live in. We’ve provided you the following to learn more about this career.
Home inspectors have to carry E&O insurance which wants you to relinquish all liabilities from the inspector, and put them on the person buying or a reputable contractor. So I would think the two business plan would bring you problems you don't want. Its can be a good business, but as Carrera pointed out, if you do what you are supposed to do, which is look out for your clients you will not work much.
I did commercial inspections for big bank clients during acquisition, and for hotel chains as well as payment application reviews and field reports monthly during construction. There are a number of firms who hire out for this work, paying a base salary + commission. I made way more money doing that work than being an architect.
Granted that raises some serious liability questions but building inspectors seem to get around that fairly well. Now, many people approaching retirement are stepping off the end of one career onto the beginning of something brand new. Some even take early retirement to get a head start on the next life stage.
3tk, I have tried the Sketches/ Quick renderings before and had limited success. Most of the success was with commercial TI spaces that agents were looking to rent. Jonathan - Think the biggest problem Realtors have are buyers with no vision ... Once you are known, Realtors might contact you on problem houses that you could do some quick sketches on that the Realtor could use to sell, no different than staging services. It could for the time being be a small side business, a couple a weekend or something to get the process streamlined and efficient. I'm exploring breaking the inspection into two different parts the typical inspection and then something unique that would give me a serious advantage and allow me to charge closer to 1K per inspection.
There’s BIG opportunity to set yourself apart from your competitors. The startup costs for home inspection are remarkably low when compared to other career fields. This was surprising to me and continues to be for a lot of AHIT students. An investment of just a few thousand dollars can set you up with the training you need to get licensed and the tools you’ll need to start inspecting homes. I think you get paid something like $300-$500 per inspection. The agents have their favorite inspectors so might be a bit hard to break into.
The salary and growth data on this page comes from recently published Bureau of Labor Statistics data while the recommendations and editorial content are based on our research. So many students come to AHIT from careers where they’ve worked hard, physical jobs day in and day out. This career still allows you opportunities to be ‘hands-on’ and out from behind a desk without the rigorous physical activity that can injure or further aggravate joints and backs. All I have to do is head home, proofread it, and email it to my client later in the day. When training to become home inspector, you’ll notice quickly that every state has different requirements for licensing. For example, in Wyoming, there isn’t a training requirement to become a home inspector.
The community college has a qualifying course, the 40hrs on the job will be tuff but I think i can find someone to offer some free work for in exchange for shadowing them on the job. Test and content should be easy, since I have worked in residential architecture for 10 plus years. Thank you for an outstanding week of professional training. I can’t imagine anyone ever thinking of going into this business without attending your school.
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