Home inspection: a guide for pros
What customers ask, how to win the job, and what to put on your profile.
Offering home inspection
You inspect homes for buyers and sometimes sellers, reporting visible defects and the condition of the structure and systems. Clients hire you for a thorough, accurate, well-photographed report that they can use in a negotiation.
What customers ask
- Are you licensed or certified, and what is your insurance?
- Which parts of the house will you not be able to reach?
- Do you test the sewer, the radon or the mold?
- How long until I receive the report, and what does it include?
- Will you tell me which items need a specialist?
- Can I attend the inspection?
How to win the job
- On the first call, ask for the home's age, the square footage, the systems that are known and the add-ons the client wants, then give a clear scope before you book
- Explain at the start of the inspection which areas are accessible and which are not, and note any access limits in the report
- Put the scope, the add-on tests and the report timing in the proposal, so the client knows what is included and what is extra
- Walk the client through the main findings on site, with photos of the defects you think matter most
- Separate in the report the items that are safety concerns, the items that need a specialist and the items that are maintenance
- Show a sample report with photos and the recommendation style you use
What to put on your profile
- Post a sample report with the photos, the summary page and the defect notes, with personal details removed
- List your license or certification numbers and the state where they were issued
- Show the systems you inspect and the add-on tests you offer
- State your report delivery time and your re-inspection terms
Follow-up that helps the customer
- Offer a re-inspection after the seller completes repairs, so the buyer can confirm the work
- Suggest a maintenance schedule for the systems you inspected, such as the furnace, the roof and the water heater
- Offer to share a list of licensed trades for the items the report flagged, with their credentials checked
Licenses and permits
Home inspectors are commonly required to be licensed or certified by the state, and they often carry errors and omissions insurance. Check with your state licensing board for your license, continuing education and insurance requirements before you take the work.
Questions
How do I handle a client who wants me to say a house is fine?
Report what you saw and what you could not see. Explain that a clean report means the visible and accessible areas showed no defects you could identify, not that the house has no problems.
What do I do if a buyer's agent asks me to change the report?
Do not change findings because of a third party's request. Correct errors you can verify, note any new information with its date, and keep the original report on file.
How do requests reach me on infinibell?
Customers describe the job and pick the pros they want by name, and only the pros they picked see the request. Joining is free. You pay only for the leads you accept, and you can decline a request for free. Every pro is reviewed before going live.
About this guide
This national guide is written and checked by infinibell. Rules and conditions differ by place, so local pros are credited on guides for the cities they serve, not on national ones.
Edit history
- Oct 29, 2026: Drafted by infinibell to our content guidelines.
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