If you’ve seen one nice home you’ve seen them all, right? Hardly. Technology is advancing quickly, and along with it the systems and fixtures in luxury homes. What you’re accustomed to inspecting might bear some resemblance to what you’ll find in a high-end property. But some of it might leave you scratching your head. If…
Mike Chamberlain is the owner and lead home inspector with MC2 Home Inspections. He has a background in construction and residential real estate and has nine years of experience as an inspector and business owner. We recently asked him about the challenges of running a home inspection business. Here’s wha the had to say: What…
If you’ve been in the home inspection industry for more than a minute, you’re well-familiar with the “visual inspection” language that’s so common. It’s in nearly every Standards of Practice, both with associations and at certain state levels. But are any inspections really visual only? And could a visual inspection ever be sufficient? Some industry…
The weather will soon warm up again, and air conditioning units will get a workout. That’s the classic time for lurking problems to surface. In winter, you’ll switch on the air conditioning just long enough to inspect it. But when the weather is warm and the unit might be running more often, problems that have…
According to the National Flood Insurance Program, floods are the No. 1 natural disaster in the U.S. and they’re not cheap to recover from. Between 2005 and 2014 NFIP estimates flood insurance claims averaged $3.5 billion a year. And with climate change bringing more intense storms, chances are this average will only grow. Which is…
ICA School’s course author and instructor, Steve Preins, regularly takes email questions from students, prospective students and inspectors out working in the industry. You never know which question will pop up next, and he addresses them in a regular podcast series available at no cost. This week’s question is from prospective student, Tom, in Orlando,…
With Americans living longer and healthier lives, many older men and women prefer to stay in their own home instead of moving with family or opting for retirement residences. Additionally, Americans with disabilities need certain home improvements to make living at home more accessible. Unfortunately, the idea is not without its problems. That’s where CLIPP…
As you probably know, or will learn soon after earning your certification, there’s a lot more to being a home inspector than just performing inspections. Some keys to good business take a little extra effort on your part, but are well worth it in the long run. Such is the case with a pre-inspection agreement.…
Home inspecting can be a dirty job, but do you really want to meet a client wearing your Saturday worst? Maybe worse than that is dressing up too much, considering that you’re going to get dirty. There has to be a happy medium. Your inspections should be the focal point of your business. Any client…
In such a litigious society, you might one day find yourself sworn in and offering a statement in someone else’s real estate lawsuit. Sometimes this happens with a home that you have inspected, and sometimes the case deals with a home that you’ve never seen before. There are many reasons why you might be called…
