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The home inspection industry is currently not a regulated industry, which means that anyone can call themselves a home inspector and charge a fee to look at homes and give you a report or opinion on the condition of the home. So until the home inspection industry gets its own version of REBBA making it illegal to charge a fee for a home inspection related service, without first being registered and insured, how do you choose the right home inspector?
I think we would all recognize that this picture would be of someone you would not like to have inspecting your home, yet home inspectors are rarely this obviously unqualified. So, always make sure that they are a member of the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors (CAHPI) and in Ontario, Canada, they should also belong to the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors (OAHI). These two organizations have their own rules, regulations, ethics codes and training qualifications that must be met in order to remain a member.
Make sure that they have errors and omission insurance that is up to date and paid for, just in case they do miss something that should have been detected. I believe that Insurance coverage is a requirement for both of the above organizations, however it is best to ask and even to see an insurance policy "slip" stating that the insurance coverage is valid and active.
In Ontario, Canada, all REALTORS® must advise their clients that a home inspection is recommended service. Most will even give you a few names to choose from. You should call at least 2-3 home inspectors and interview them to find out what they do and how much they charge. Some may provide extra services for a premium or use specialized equipment that goes beyond a basic home inspection. You can expect to pay close to $400 for a home inspection on a home up to 2,500sq ft if it is not too old. Older homes may cost more as they often need to be home thoroughly inspected and my have crawl spaces and awkward spaces that the home inspector needs to get into to inspect the home. Larger homes will often cost more as there is more home to inspect and it will take longer and may even involve multiple heating and ventilation systems or other home systems that are included in the inspection.
As Part of my
York Region real estate service I have several home inspectors that I recommend to my clients based on how thorough they are. They do not work for me, so they are responsible to my clients to provide the information that they need even if it means the client does not want to close on that home because of it. I would rather we all know that a home is in poor condition and move on to finding a home that is good than to have an unhappy client in the future when the problems become more obvious.
