# Pros/Cons Offering "Home Inspection" services?



## WNYcarpenter (Mar 2, 2007)

Seems like being a professional home builder, offering inspection services could be a nice supplemental income....... You'd think no one would be better suited than contractors.

I don't see much reference to the business here so I'm curious what the pros and cons are.......


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## Kevin M. (Feb 28, 2010)

My friend teaches home inspection for a company. He mentioned the most successful people in that particular industry are normally marketing guru's. He found the typical contractor well versed in all the technical aspects got waxed by the sales savvy guy's. 

It is a competitive industry. You need to be able to network with real estate agents and loan officers. 

Kinda one of those strange deals, the most informed and capable guy may get up staged by the clever marketing guy.


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## Tinstaafl (Jan 6, 2008)

The son of a failed GC I used to work for makes a pretty decent living doing nothing but that. The little I know about it...

You do have to take a course or six and be certified by somebody or other. You need an office space with file cabinets to hold the reams of paperwork you'll be processing, along with email and fax capabilities. You need to be willing to deal with reams of paperwork.

And you'll have to have a different personality and character from what I've seen of you here. :whistling


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## tcleve4911 (Mar 26, 2006)

I'm addressing this post with a clarification mind set.
If I'm off base with your goals, then I apologize.

As a 25 year tradesman, my recall of the opportunity to pursue the Inspection Business was that it became a conflict of interest.

An Inspector's job (According to Walt Steppenwolth..."How to become a Home Inspector") is to report conditions as he/she sees it at the time of inspection.

...not the cause

....not the fix 

.....not the estimated cost

It's just a report for buyers, sellers and interested financial folks.

That means YOU are not allowed to give any trades input on...
How YOU would fix it 
How much YOU would charge
Or how YOU would be happy to take on the project.

It's supposed to be a non biased report of facts.

So for the guys that have been in the trades and think that this could be an avenue for future work:no:

It's a conflict of interest........period.

Wasn't trying to burst a bubble. Just sharing my experience.


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## skyhook (Mar 17, 2007)

I know one guy who was very successful at it. 
Bought a new house and all the toys to go with. 
He is liquidating and filing BK right now.


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## Anti-wingnut (Mar 12, 2009)

Tinstaafl said:


> You do have to take a course or six and be certified by somebody or other. You need an office space with file cabinets to hold the *reams and reams and reams* of paperwork you'll be processing, along with email and fax capabilities. You need to be willing to deal with* reams and reams and reams* of paperwork.


changes noted



Tinstaafl said:


> And you'll have to have a different personality and character from what I've seen of you here. :whistling


:laughing:That Tinstaafl, what a cut up:laughing:


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## WNYcarpenter (Mar 2, 2007)

I'm more curious than anything.......I read a neat article on the subject recently, and just visited a buddy who picked my brain about his inspection. Got me thinking, That's all........as much as I would like to dream about breaking away from the grind, I'll be swinging a hammer 'till the end.....

Just wait until I start to pretend I'm gonna be a contractor......I'll blow up your PMs Tin.......your gonna be my point man:laughing:


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## woodchuck2 (Feb 27, 2008)

I have had several private buyers and even real estate agents approach me to do building inspections. I quickly backed away. IMO there is too much liability involved considering the amount of knowledge you better know if there ever came a day in court. Who here is really "certified" in all aspects of a homes construction from the dirt to the peak and be willing to stand up in court and be tore apart by an attorney?


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## Anti-wingnut (Mar 12, 2009)

tcleve4911 said:


> I'm addressing this post with a clarification mind set.
> If I'm off base with your goals, then I apologize.
> 
> As a 25 year tradesman, my recall of the opportunity to pursue the Inspection Business was that it became a conflict of interest.
> ...


Good points. I think you can't be too knowlegeable. You can't go around saying everything is all f*ed up, even when it is. You have to be OCD about:

GFCI's, even when they aren't required
dirt too close to the wood structure
clogged gutters
knob and tube, even when the house was built in 1992
Fuse boxes, Zinsco and FPE


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## Mike's Plumbing (Jul 19, 2010)

I think it's a good thing but the competition is pretty steep right now. I would guess building relationships is absolute key to having much success.

I know two people who do this and from what I head things are not going to well. Jobs are spotty I suppose.

Mike


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## griz (Nov 26, 2009)

IMO, nothing but a bunch of two bit scam artists. Most of the time can't find a legit problem if it hit'em sq. in the nose. Rest of the time trying to impress some real estate agent on their lunch hour from the used car lot.


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## Kevin M. (Feb 28, 2010)

woodchuck2 said:


> I have had several private buyers and even real estate agents approach me to do building inspections. I quickly backed away. IMO there is too much
> 
> 
> > *liability*
> ...


I got a real severe electrical shock installing an ice maker line to a refrigerator. A home inspector had cleared all the wiring. :whistling

My electrician came in and checked everything out. The home inspector missed 6 or 8 major issues. He just said, "Scary".


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## Tinstaafl (Jan 6, 2008)

WNYcarpenter said:


> Just wait until I start to pretend I'm gonna be a contractor......I'll blow up your PMs Tin.......your gonna be my point man:laughing:


As long as you realize that ultimately there is no point, we'll do just fine. :laughing:


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## concretemasonry (Dec 1, 2006)

If you do work on a home, you cannot inspect it if you expect to be certified by the major organizations. If you find a problem area, it should be identified and if the owner looks for further professional advice in a specialized area 2 or 3 names should be given. Most states also have similar requirements.

Inspection is not a big money maker because 2 inspections per day is great because you are dealing with several person's schedules, driving time and report preparation report time to net enough to pay the liability insurance.

A real god inspector can make more money working for people and contractors planning to sell a property (pre-sale inspection) because the report is confidential and the inspector understands what the pre-purchase inspector is looking for and can provide a list of suggested corrections. -He may also make some preparations for showing since it is a generally visual inspection and if something is hidden by materials stored, it cannot be inspected (an old trick that many people know). Only basic items and systems can be checked and very few safety items can be operated and power is usually not shut off because of computers and medical monitoring equipment.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 17, 2008)

this is an interesting topic, i remember a few years ago when i bought my first place the inspector actually knew what he was talking about , im pretty good at sniffing out bull**** and i was comfortable with this guy. i asked him what his background was. he clearly stated that he was a builder up until he hurt his back, he couldnt handle the wear and tear anymore so he hung up his nailbag and got into inspection.. this is the type of thing i like seeing guys who come from the field but not longer work in it as opposed to some moron who went to university and watched a couple episdodes of toh then decided to take a 3 day course on home inspection.

back to the topic though, when i had my inspection the guy was noticing i knew a fair amount of technical stuff. when i told him i was a foreman for a renovation company he offered me a job in their energy efficiency audit sector... i dont know enough about heating systems so i didnt bother just too honest i guess. who knows though maybe in the future


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## WNYcarpenter (Mar 2, 2007)

woodworkbykirk said:


> this is an interesting topic, i remember a few years ago when i bought my first place the inspector actually knew what he was talking about , im pretty good at sniffing out bull**** and i was comfortable with this guy. i asked him what his background was. he clearly stated that he was a builder up until he hurt his back, he couldnt handle the wear and tear anymore so he hung up his nailbag and got into inspection.. this is the type of thing i like seeing guys who come from the field but not longer work in it as opposed to some moron who went to university and watched a couple episdodes of toh then decided to take a 3 day course on home inspection.
> 
> back to the topic though, when i had my inspection the guy was noticing i knew a fair amount of technical stuff. when i told him i was a foreman for a renovation company he offered me a job in their energy efficiency audit sector... i dont know enough about heating systems so i didnt bother just too honest i guess. who knows though maybe in the future


That's more what I'm asking about....do you want some punk filling out a checklist, or someone with real knowledge explaining how "your" house works. It's not so much about gaining construction work than introducing a new home owner to their home........an unbiased opinion.....you're telling the buyer what exactly they are paying for.......

NY is a buyer beware state....as is....you point out the flaws and it is up to the buyer/seller to negotiate..there's no going back on the seller, but the buyer has all the information to lean on as they deem necessary to remedy.


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## WNYcarpenter (Mar 2, 2007)

Tinstaafl said:


> As long as you realize that ultimately there is no point, we'll do just fine. :laughing:


we will.:thumbsup:


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