Facts About Westchester Home Inspectors

By Larry Stevens


Home inspection is a field within the industry of building and construction that deals with the inspection of homes and structures to ascertain their structural condition. Buyers usually ask for inspection of a building before they make a purchase to ensure that they are buying the right home. Besides helping to determine the condition of the house, an inspection also helps to determine its value. Therefore, this exercise is very useful. Here are facts regarding Westchester home inspectors.

The salaries earned by home inspectors are usually decent in many countries worldwide, especially in the US. Annually, one can earn up to 70, 000 dollars working in this field. There is also a lot of flexibility in the field. One is required to be licensed in many of the states in the US, but not all. There are no licensure requirements in very many states.

This means that practitioners have to find out in advance if licenses are required in the states they intend to work in. The steps to getting licensed are clear and one must follow them carefully. All inspectors have sound knowledge in construction and building. It is this knowledge that enables them to do their work better as they can capture mistakes and defects with ease.

As such, gaining some knowledge in a building and construction is a very good move towards becoming licensed. One should learn how homes of different types and eras are built. They should also understand all the building standards and requirements enforced by the state. Understanding how the installation of electrical, plumbing, and heating systems is done to achieve value, efficiency, and safety is also important.

The second step should be to ensure that one has good interpersonal relationships. The job involves talking to people and listening to them in large part. One may need to communicate vital information and listen to concerns while working. Others are charged with leading small teams of inspectors. As such, having good leadership skills can be very helpful.

Licensing requirements differ a lot in various states of the US as well as one nation to another. Some of the common requirements include apprenticeship certificate, high school diploma, licensing test certificate and coursework certificate. The mentioned requirements are sometimes combined in some states. These requirements are easier and simple to achieve. In fact those interested in this work can achieve the requirements within a short duration.

There are several employment options in this field. For instance, one may choose to be self-employed and look for clients to provide service to. Others may choose to be employed by professional home inspection companies. Lastly, others work for property inspection companies, but as contractors, with the company taking up between 40 to 60 percent of the fee charged by the contractor.

There are advantages and shortcomings associated with working as a contractor. One of the advantages is that one does not need to pay the initial cost people pay when they start new businesses. Also, one can work with multiple companies to ensure that they have a steady supply of clients without working so hard to get them. However, the cost charged by the company can be prohibitive in some cases.




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