News Home Inspectors Can Use: Summer Edition

Summa-summa-summa tiiiiiiiiiiime is here, bringing with it lots of home buying and the joy of inspecting a home and property with the blazing sun beating down your neck. If you need an escape from the heat, boy howdy have we got some. Here are a few cool conferences coming up for home inspectors:

* July 11th, 12th and 13th, the Great Lakes Chapter of ASHI hosts their summer conference. This year’s event will feature workshops on modern HVAC equipment, reporting techniques, inspection tips and of course their peer review program, which we covered last year. Registration ends June 29th. Info on conference fees and a schedule of events is available here.

* Texas, home of the TAREI Summer Conference. This year’s event kicks off in Houston from July 25th through 26th. No details have been announced yet.

* Oil and gas inspectors, head to Texas (if you’re not there already). The IQPC Oil & Gas Asset Integrity and Inspection Management Summit runs from July 28th through 30th in Houston and will include speakers from Chevron, Shell, the Subsea Engineering Program at the University of Houston and Eagle Energy.

* The North Carolina Council of Code Officials also welcomes their 10th Quadrennial Educational Conference August 3 through 6 at the Hilton Wilmington Riverside. Registration is $200 for current inspectors and $100 for retired inspectors if you register before July 18th.

* If you want the skinny on becoming a roof data technician, InterNACHI is passing it out for free. Wednesday, August 6th, InterNACHI will host a free online training seminar designed to educate inspectors on what roof data technicians do and how to get started. You can check out the full program of events right over here.

* Late August brings with it the six annual section meetings of the International Association of Electrical Inspectors. The six regional meetings run through mid-October and kick off with the Southwestern Section Meeting in Sparks, Nevada from August 24th through the 28th. A full list of each meeting is available at iaei.org.

News You Can Use: So You Missed InspectionWorld Edition

If you missed InspectionWorld, don’t sweat it. There are still tons and tons of awesome home inspection conferences throughout February and March to keep you sharp on cutting edge tools and techniques. Mark your calendars accordingly:

* Strap on your snow boots and head to Minocqua, Wisconsin. The Wisconsin REALTORs Association Winter Conference kicks off January 29 through 31, 2014 and features “informative workshops about how to grow your business, mobile apps, rental agreements and more!” You’ll find seminars on social media marketing strategies, new laws that can have a drastic impact on your home inspection business, time management, and continuing education credits that can help fill your CE requirements. Also, and we’ve mentioned this several times before, there’s an indoor water park directly next to the conference and Wisconsin REALTORs Association provides information on snow mobile rentals, so there’s no fear that all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

* We’ve been touting the  Texas Association of Real Estate Inspectors‘ (TAREI) annual winter conference in Austin,TX for months now but we finally, FINALLY! have some firm details on what the conference will include. Taking place from January 24th to 25th, the conference will include continuing education courses on infrared technology, stucco and manufactured stone inspections, framing inspections, structural systems, and electrical systems. Click here for a full schedule. You can also get registered right over here.

* The Georgia Association of Home Inspectors hosts their annual conference February 7 and 8 in Atlanta. Largely focus on Georgia building codes, the conference will include seminars on some of the biggest topics in home inspections including electrical panels, plumbing, mechanical updates, and framing and deck updates. Click here for a full schedule and information on registration.

* North Carolina lights up for the NCHLIA Continuing Education Conference February 21 and 22 in Wrightsville Beach. Those who sign up before January 23 can save a bit on registration costs.

* Home energy professionals should head straight to Hotlanta for the RESNET Building Performance Conference February 24th through 26th. And you should do it quick. Early bird registration deals last through January 24. In addition to seminars on energy tax credits, field testing troubleshooting, and radiant barriers, RESNET also features pre-conference courses on combustion safety, ENERGY STAR certification, LEED, PHIUS rater training, and social media marketing starting February 22. A full list of conference workshops is available right here.

* Looking way ahead, the Orlando Inspection Conference in Florida isn’t scheduled until April, but limited time early bird registration deals are available now. More than 500 inspectors attend the event and the new year’s conference will cover both ins and outs of inspecting—think workshops on wind mitigation, water intrusion forensic inspecting and environmental sampling—as well as seminars on creating and building your marketing platform. Boost your networking contacts, professional know-how and Google ranking all in one place.

 

News Home Inspectors Can Use: October 2013 Edition

Fall has fallen and so have a boatload of home inspection events. Here’s how to get educated, get connected and get back in business:

* THE major event hitting the home inspection scene this month is the 2013 Las Vegas Inspection Conference. Slated for October 20 through 24 in Sin City, this year’s show includes workshops ranging from amping up your marketing brochures to info on breaking income barriers. Of course you’ll get to play with the latest gadgets and take the standard certification classes too. This year’s conference also includes a live interactive home inspection broadcast where you’ll get to pick up tips from the pros while they’re in the field. Head here for the full schedule.

* If you’re in (or trying to break into) the home remodeling biz, mark your calendars for October 16 through 18 and start looking for airfare to Chicago. The Remodeling Show national trade expo covers everything from building design to project management and provides an excellent opportunity for home inspectors to connect with those in the remodeling biz. A full schedule of NAHB courses is available here. Step right this way to register.

* For our home inspection friends up north, there are events for you too. The CAHPI National Home Inspectors Conference rocks Ottawa, Canada, November 8th through 10th. The one-day conference will cover topics ranging from environmental training to electrical and new construction inspections. Click here to register.

* ASHI is also bringing the home inspection heat this coming November. The Mid-Missouri ASHI Fall Seminar kicks off in Columbia, Missouri November 5th while the St. Louis ASHI Fall Seminar hits the Maryland Heights Community Center November 8th. Inspectors in those areas can head here for more information.

* Speaking of ASHI, now is the time to get those plane tickets for InspectionWorld. One of the largest home inspection conferences in the country, InspectionWorld hits Nashville, Tennessee January 12th through 15th, 2014. This year’s conference will feature 45 educational sessions, including separate tracks for those who want to bone up on their business management, specialty training or building science skills. There’s also an entire bevy of events for spouses. Head here to get registered.

Innovative Home Inspectors

Adding auxiliary services like mold testing, home safety inspections or radon assessments can boost your bottom line, but so can thinking outside the box. Here are a few ways that working home inspectors are bringing in some extra dough.

Signing Off

When there’s a lull in business, Gregory Pomp, owner of Just Right Inspection Service in Orland Park, Illinois, relies on his side gig as a notary public to bring in extra bucks. A licensed home inspector for the past seven years, Pomp offers basic home inspection, mold and radon testing and termite inspections as well as notary public services which may include notarizing deeds, affidavits, wills, loan paperwork and other documents.

“[Notary services] don’t take a lot of my time and I can do it very quickly,” Pomp says, Currently, notary public work brings in about 10 percent of Pomp’s income, but he says that the work also introduces him to future home inspection clients. “It is a good marketing opportunity,” he adds.

Though regulations vary from state to state, becoming a notary public is fairly easy. Most states simply require that you prove state residency, have a clean criminal history and forking over a fee. Some states like Texas also require future notaries to submit proof of a bond which acts as a kind of security deposit in case any clients are filed against you. A breakdown of each state’s eligibility requirements is available right over here.

 

Heading the Class

When Jack McGraw left contracting in 1999, he spent about two weeks being officially retired then found himself “bouncing off the walls.” Becoming a home inspector later that year, McGraw found that he not only had a talent for investigating properties, he could also teach others to do the same.

“It helped that I had a background in construction and firefighting,” says McGraw, who splits his time between teaching at running Jacks Home Services inspection firm in Hickory Hill, Illinois. “…it took off very very well, being an inspector and a teacher.”

13 years after becoming a teacher, McGraw is now National School Manager of ASHI Education Inc, a division of the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI). For home inspectors who are looking for either training or teaching opportunities, now is the time since The ASHI School is looking to hire instructors, and enrolling students in their 120-hour home inspection classes.

“We’re looking for someone who has been in the indstury for a couple of years and has 500 to 1,000 inspections under their belt,” he says. Experience in the construction fields also help. “…Any knowledge whether an electrician, plumber, roofer, that’s going to enhance their ability to be a good instructor,” he adds. “They also need to be a good communicator, not afraid to speak in front of a crowd and understand the nine components of home inspection.”

To find out more about becoming a teacher, contact The ASHI School at 888.884.0440 or at TheAshiSchool.com.

 

Becoming a Ref

Home inspections also lend themselves to other types of home-related services. Gregory Pomp of Just Right Inspection Services is also adding referral services to his list of income-generators. Signing on with ADT security systems, Pomp says that earning a kickback from ADT is as easy as suggesting their products to home inspection clients who are already in the market for home security wares.

“If a client is at all interested in an alarm system, I pass [ADT’s] information along. If they’re not, I don’t,” he says.

If you’re interested in joining a referral program in your area, reach out to other home performance professionals to figure out if they’re offering or belong to one.

What Your Home Inspection Clients Don’t Know…

Part of the challenge of being a home inspector is simply educating current and future clients about what you do. While the American public has a general idea of what home inspectors do, misconceptions abound. Here are the most common myths you may need to dispel for your clients:

What They Think:

A Home Inspection is a One-Stop Shop

According to a 2012 American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) survey of 2,262 adults, the vast majority believe that home inspectors are important but they’re not sure exactly why. 84 percent of survey respondents believe that a proper home inspection is a necessity, but 12 percent of respondents confused a home inspection with an appraisal and a walloping 28 percent “believes the purpose of an inspection is to verify that a home complies with local building codes.”

What They Think: 

A Home Inspection is Comprehensive

When home buyers enlist your services, they may think that they’re getting every inch of their pad inspected. A 2011 ASHI survey of 2,122 adults showed that the many home buyers believe that components such as septic systems, electrical wiring and plumbing behind drywall and swimming pools are always included in their home inspection even though you may not include them in yours.

According to ASHI, a standard inspection report covers home basics including:

“…the condition of the home’s heating system; central air conditioning system (temperature permitting); interior plumbing and electrical systems; the roof, attic and visible insulation; walls, ceilings, floors, windows and doors; the foundation, basement and structural components. The report will include covered systems and components the home inspector finds that are not functioning properly, significantly deficient, unsafe, or are near the end of their service lives”

What They Think: 

All Home Inspectors are Certified

The thing home buyers seem confused on most is your credentials. 70 percent of buyers believe that home inspectors must be licensed or certified to perform a home inspection in that state. They don’t, meaning that if you do have a license, certification or outstanding credential, it’s worth your while to educate clients on how you’ve gone above and beyond and what that extra education can do for them.