One way to find a good home inspector

Thanks for sharing. Home buyers should seek advice from their exclusive agents to obtain the names of the best inspectors.

As a former member of ASHI, I just want to point out that one can become a "Candidate Member" of ASHI just by sending in a check for membership. Then, within 12 months, one has to complete various other items -- such as fee-paid inspections and a knowledge test -- before becoming a full member.

Trade associations in any industry are not the be-all and end-all for choosing someone although they can be helpful. Rather than choosing somone just because they belong to an association, actually check out their references, their business insurance, their experience, years in business, how many inspections they personally have done, etc.

There are several other trade associations for home inspectors, too, which is part of the problem with the home inspection industry:

1. International Association of Certified Home Inspectors -- North America's largest home inspector trade association; about 9,000 members
2. National Association of Home Inspectors - about 4,500 members
3. Society of Professional Real Estate Inspectors - about 1,000 members
4. Housing Inspection Foundation - about 1,000 members
5. National Academy of Building Inspection Engineers - membership unknown
6. The Foundation of Real Estate Appraisers - includes home inspectors; membership unknown
7. American Association of Home Inspectors - about 600 members
8. National Institute of Building Inspectors - membership unknown
9. Organization of Real Estate Professionals - membership unknown

I've been a member of the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI) since March 2003 for two main reasons:

1. You cannot join InterNACHI just by sending in a check. You have to pass a knowledge-based exam FIRST!
2. InterNACHI has the industry's most active message board, and since I don't know everything, and since InterNACHI is the largest home inspector trade association, I can post a question or a picture on the message board and have the correct answer within hours, sometimes even minutes. So if a Client asks me a question to which I don't know the answer, I truly can promise that I will know the answer within 24 hours.

Additionally, many states have their own home inspector trade associations. For example, California has the California Real Estate Inspectors Association with about 1,200 members.