
Posted by: Kaplan Real Estate Education
Updated: January 29, 2019
Entering a new profession, any profession, is a difficult decision. Home inspection is no different. You should clearly understand not only what the new profession will be like, but the best path to success for you in that profession. Below are a few points that will give you a representation of the home inspection industry.
Home Inspector Overview
Historically, home inspectors are people who have had previous careers. This has been a transition industry filled with men and women that are on their second, third, and sometimes fourth career.
Over 75% of all home inspectors are between the ages of 42 to 65. This should not discourage the younger generations. With the internet, computers, smartphones and the like, younger men and women are in the process of changing the home inspection industry for the better. The youth are finding this is one of the last industries where you can run your own business with few regulations and overhead while generating a respectable income.
Everybody is different. Some people enjoy climbing a ladder to inspect a roof, and are willing to get down on their knees and inspect a crawl space. Other people enjoy record keeping, reports, marketing, and relationship building. All of these are integral parts of the home inspection business.
Questions Prospective Home Inspectors Should Answer
Think about what you enjoy, what you are willing to do, what you are good at, and then answer these questions:
- Are you the kind of person who doesn’t want to be tied to a desk all day?
- Are you interested in construction and how things work?
- Are you good at identifying problems and defects?
If so, then home inspection might be a great career option for you.
Where to Go for More Information
In addition to these questions, there are a number of traits shared by many successful home inspectors. Some of these traits include a desire to be your own boss, attention to detail, a teacher's mindset as well as a willingness to continuously learn, and of course a working knowledge of residential home systems. You will also need specific skills. If these seem like traits you posess, check out our '3 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Starting a Home Inspection Career' article.
FREE eBook: Launching Your Home Inspection Career

We compiled the knowledge of six successful home inspection professionals into one valuable eBook to give you the insider's knowledge you need to know before starting your career. We asked these pros what advice they'd give to prospective home inspectors, and where they often see new inspectors fail. This free eBook contains all of their advice in one essential resource for anyone preparing to make a career shift to home inspection.
Download FREE eBook
To learn more about becoming a home inspector in your state, simply select your state from the list on the home inspection training landing page.