Getting certified for Home Inspection?

Question

Hello Everyone!

This is my first post. My investment strategy is to acquire multifamily buildings and bank on the cash flow to acquire more multifamily buildings.

My question is, I have no idea what I am looking at. And I remember reading on an intro guide from Bigger Pockets that buying a property at the right price is how you will make money in this business.

So is it in my best interest to go through a home inspection course to better understand housing structures so that I can spot a good deal when I come across one?

If you do believe that's a good idea, do you have any courses that you would recommend?

Thank you again for any assistance!

Joe Fairless · Answer

@Justin Bilyj - the inspection course certainly would be useful but it isn't the best way to identify good deals. If you're buying multi-family then you first need to know the fundamentals of evaluating income, expenses and debt service.Then you need to determine your investment strategy (buy and hold, flip, wholesale). After identifying your strategy you need to build out your team based on the strategy (i.e. a wholesale team looks different than a buy-and-hold team).

At that point you can identify the good deals because they'll align with your strategy and meet your financial goals.

Congrats on choosing multifamily - it's a great business to be in right now!

Andy Collins · Answer

I have a different approach, if there are things I can hire someone to do, I hire it out, I have used the same inspector for years, I trust his judgement and he has 20+ years in all the things needed to be an inspector (so he is better than I would ever be).

I would focus on the financial side, read as many books as you  can on real estate investing (not on becoming a millionaire overnight),,the idea about helping investors in your area is a great one,,,anything that allows you to 'rub shoulders' with investors is worth experience you can't get in any book or course.

Patrick Snyder · Answer

That's exactly what I did, and it has defintely paid off.  I think anyone who is in the rehab business can spot many of the problems inspectors find, but I took the traininig route prior to getting into investing full time.  There are plenty of books and training courses that don't cost much, that really may be worth your time.  And your librabry may carry Ohio building code books, too, which could also aid in your future business.

Good luck!

Roy Johnson · Answer

Would any of you feel confident i  yourselfl to do a little research and not consult an attorney and make a legal dexcision yourself. Of course noy.

It is bad enough the most rstringent ceetification requirements veey from 0-120 hours in the US   that is still inadequate in my opinion.  Unless someone has credentials as I do, an AA in buildig Inspection Technology, you are at riak.  Read your contracts.  Not responsible for this, that almost everything.  Sad when you must trust someones expertise

Paul Timmins · Answer

@Justin Bilyj

Welcome. ASHI.org is a big association for inspection.

Check out the Start Here page http://www.biggerpockets.com/starthere

Check out BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide - A fantastic free book that walks through many of the key topics of real estate investing.

Check out the free BiggerPockets Podcast - A weekly podcast with interviews and a ton of great advice. And you get the benefit of having 40 past ones to catch up on.

Locate and attend 3 different local REIA club meetings great place to meet people gather resources and info.

Two Great reads, I bought both J. Scott The Book on Flipping Houses,The Book on Estimating ReHab Costshttp://www.biggerpockets.com/flippingbook

Good Luck

Paul

Justin B. · Answer

So I have found online courses for around $800, and the real deal holyfield (live classes) for 3k...anybody know which is more worth it?

Bryan L. · Answer

Ah, but there's so much else that you need to know as well.  And - if you make a mistake on that MF purchase, it can eat you up.  Ask me how I know.  Be careful.

Cuong Le · Answer

hi @Justin Bilyj and welcome to BP! Contact some of your local REIA and seek the MF guys there. When they get new properties, ask them if you can help them do the audits. This will help them as well as you to learn what they are looking for. Some REIAs even have road trips that show case their member's properties. Another good opportunity to ask them questions and find out what to look for. This with your inspection class will serve you well.

Aaron Montague · Answer

I'm not deeply familiar with home inspections, but I do see these guys come up over and over again:

http://www.ushomeinspectorlicense.com <-- goes directly to their Ohio site.  They say their course gives you all the tools to become a home inspector in Ohio, but they don't actually link to an official page.

ahii.com pops up quite a bit as well.

I don't see any evidence of a Home Inspection License requirement in Ohio.  http://business.ohio.gov/licensing/

I'd check in with your local town hall or sheriff and ask what, if anything, you need to become a home inspector in Ohio.

Getting certified for Home Inspection?

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