Hi Lief,
My name is Les. I just started a new inspection business in Sterling, VA. (1st Reliance Home Inspections, Inc.) I have performed inspections as a general contractor for years in the Richmond, VA area, but when I moved to Northern VA I felt it would be a good idea to get a certification. I took an 8 day - 80 hour training course with "AHIT" (American Home Inspection Training Institute). The website is
WWW.ahit.com. I personally found the training to be very helpful. It cost about $1800, but it was worth it. If you, like me, have extensive experience in the building industry, this or other similar courses could be just the ticket. It will give you all of the ins & outs of the home ispection industry. I found it to be especially valuable in helping me to understand how to keep myself out of trouble with liability issues. Don't get me wrong, the technical training was good as well, but I personally didn't need much of that. What I needed was to learn the dynamics of the business...what to do and what not to do, how to fill out an
inspection report, what the best tools are, what kind of insurances you need, software, marketing etc. AHIT greatly helped me in these areas.(no...I don't work for AHIT, nor do I get any perks for writing this, it was just convenient for where I live). I strongly recommend that you enroll yourself in a good certification training course. A lot of these training schools work with the Fannie Mae Foundation to help with financing. The next step would be to check out some organizations such as ASHI, NAHI, or NACHI...these can all be found on the web. Log on and take one of thier practice exams to test your overall knowledge. You may be suprised.
Best of luck to you!
