I'm interested in becoming a home inspector in Charlottesville, VA. Do you think the market is big enough?

Question

There are roughly 16 home inspectors listed in the phone book for Charlottesville. There were 394 homes sold in Charlottesville during the month of May. I'm hoping to start this job part time….I'd be happy doing 2-3/week which equates to approx. 10/month. Do you think this is an unrealistic goal in the beginning. Assuming all 394 homes get inspected (which probably isn't true) this would equate to a 2.5% market share. Unfortunately, I don't have the statistics for the surrounding areas, but the home inventory is actually larger, the farther I'm willing to travel.

Answer 1

Yes, you can get into that market. The supply of home inspectors in a market isn't necessarily the only factor to business. It's how well you perform your duties. There are some inspectors in my area which I would NEVER recommend, even if they were the only ones in the phone book.

Most homes in my area ARE inspected when sold, unless it's a family sale or similar. I recommend to every client of mine that they get an inspection, and make them sign on their offer to purchase that they were informed about the advisability of a home inspection and declined the opportunity, should they decide to not have an inspection.

In order to get business going, be prepared to visit assorted real estate firms with your business card (and a large bag of Krispy Kremes), advising them of your services. Be prepared to tell the realtors how you prepare your report and what forms the report will be available in. As a realtor I like those who have electronic forms which can be transmitted via PDF or similar.

A good realtor will expect you to provide an honest assessment of the property while not making comments to the buyer which would unduly scare them away from the purchase. Tell it like it is, but don't put 'the fear of God' into a buyer.

Don't forget those Krispy Kremes !