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October Home Inspection Class Filled: Bellingham Technical College

By
Home Inspector with King of the House Home Inspection, Inc. Home Inspector Lic #207

 

Bellingham Technical College's next home inspector training course that begins on October 9, 2017 is full. I have never seen one of our classes fill-up so quickly. Once registration began, we were at full capacity in 45 days. Often there is a slot or two open right up until the first day of class. To keep the class small, so we can provide personal attention, we will only accept 12 students per offering. Our next course is scheduled for early February 2018.

BTC's Don Hester, Eastern Washington home inspector and course instructor

State law requires inspection students to obtain at least 120 hours of training, and BTC is the only state college level course that offers substantially more credits ( 135 clock hours) than minimum -- a full 15 clock hours above the baseline. In addition to acquiring the training and certification necessary for licensing, our students earn state college credits!

Along with our focusing on standard areas such as structure, electric, plumbing, etc. as of recent times, per state law updates, the current course includes study of swimming pools/spas, yard irrigation systems, and alternative methods of construction.  The video below provides an overview of the course.

 This fast-track training program takes a student from start to finish in four weeks (20 days). Classes meet M-F from 8AM to 5PM. 

After the course, the faculty provides online support that helps students prep for state exams. The BTC class, also, presents an overview of wood destroying organism education and WSDA licensing options. These are some of the reasons BTC has an exceptionally high pass rate among our students who take the state licensing exams.

 To obtain additional information on the course call 360-319-0038 or Email: Steven Smith at kingofthehouse@comcast.net

 

Posted by

Steven L. Smith

If you enjoy nostalgia and music of yesteryear, click on Elvis' gold record to visit This Day In History. To explore The Stories Behind The Music blog posts click on the electric guitar. 

 

        

 

 

 

 

Comments (9)

Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

In addition to bunching old and new inspectors together for "licensing" under Virginia's new home inspector criteria, they also require a new designation on my license called "New Residential Structures," which "allows" me to do pre-drywall and new home inspections in Virginia.  They required the designation by July 1, but didn't offer any classes until August 24.  Gubment at work.

Not only did I have to take the same expensive 200 question test as the new inspectors - I'm told I missed 7 - I had to take an expensive New Residential Structures class taught to me by a bureaucrat who has never done a pre-drywall inspection.  Somehow I passed that class too.  And now I'm CERTIFIED!  I am so, so proud!  And the John Q. Public is better protected!

What a money grab.

I might say that I didn't learn to throw a curve ball in a classroom...

Aug 30, 2017 12:11 AM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

I just re-read my previous comment and it came off a tad sarcastic.  Oh well, you know me!

Hope you're doing better, my friend, and slinging the hash.

Eat goodly.

Aug 30, 2017 12:18 AM
Donald Hester
NCW Home Inspections, LLC - Wenatchee, WA
NCW Home Inspections, LLC

Another month of brain damage coming 
Looking forward to the class.

Aug 30, 2017 08:00 AM
Steven L. Smith
King of the House Home Inspection, Inc. - Bellingham, WA
Bellingham WA Home Inspector

Jay,

We have had licensing, as hard to believe as it may be, nearly ten years. It is a mixed bag. There are still a bunch of inspectors who get away with doing a minimalist job. And there are inspectors who do not know as much as they should. But the Nhie exam has culled the least qualified. The fail rate is surprisingly high. Many of the courses here have a student pass rate of 50 percent or less. Ours is over 90 percent, but we have a few who cannot get through it even with the at home online mock tests that I created. They just cannot retain the details we need to know, or they refuse to study. Licensing keeps out those folks who would have been able to hang out their shingles before licensing. And the fact they had to pay for training weeds out a few others who previously entered the field as an easy way to make money with no investment in education or training.  Those who were good at the BSing, and fell in with agents who wanted easy inspectors,  would probably be out doing a totally inept job, without realizing they knew nothing. Having taught for four years prior to licensing, and ever since, it seems to have eliminated some of the least capable people. Also, while you are good and experienced, that is not universally always the case with inspectors who were working before the law. The least knowledgeable student I ever had, he flunked the exam and had to train, was a 20 year veteran who was making money. He had never before seen a roof box vent, sure he had but he did not know what they were. No clue what roof venting was. He saw a 2 inch drill hole in a wood post by the house and wrote up that it was wood boring anobiid beetle damage. And he went on about how he had found more cracked heat exchangers than Hvac techs and that often, when he found them, the Hvac guys said he was wrong. It went on and on. Without making the guy test like everyone else, he would still be out there knowing nothing. Yet, his resume and years would have made a person, at first glance, think he would do fine on the test. Experience alone cannot be the only factor, sometimes an experienced person has been doing it wrong infinitum. It would be nice to think the market would cull them, but in a field where many agents want soft inspections.....and agents influence their clients....that is often not the case in the real world of inspection.

Aug 30, 2017 08:36 AM
Steven L. Smith
King of the House Home Inspection, Inc. - Bellingham, WA
Bellingham WA Home Inspector

Don, in that outfit in the thumbnail you look like one of those guys who faked the moon landing back in 1969.

Aug 30, 2017 08:44 AM
Jay Markanich
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC - Bristow, VA
Home Inspector - servicing all Northern Virginia

Grandpa -- I know there are people who test well and those who don't.  That's probably a constant!  Not surprisingly I do know a couple of inspectors who have experience and not great knowledge.  But I think experience is the real key to most anything.

And I would like to see that anobiid beetle with the chompers to create a 2" hole!  Photo?

And Don's outfit is missing the helmet, with the photo of the flag reflecting in it!  But I can see the moon dust spots on his knees!

When I took that test the proctor lady said there was a 60% fail rate and that it would take me the entire 4 hours.  It took me 70 minutes and she was shocked when I walked out, thinking I had to use the bathroom.  When she said I only missed 7 I feigned surprise and said that obviously they were trick questions.  She did not appreciate that.  Unbelievably my dry humor isn't appreciated by all...

And hey, there are roof vents?

Since we last had contact my daughter had a baby, at home!  The hospital sent her home saying she was in false labor, and she was upstairs screaming for four hours.  Finally I said it was ridiculous to be home and that I was taking her to the hospital.  We got as far as the top of the stairs.  I came within 5 minutes of delivering that baby myself!  Six EMTs came to service our call, arriving just in time.   Apparently the hallway width code does not take into account all of the bodies necessary to help birth a baby.  We were all squeezed pretty tight!

Should I contact the state or national code poobahs?

Again, I hope you're well and improving.  And don't suffer too much of Don's brain damage.

Aug 30, 2017 03:12 PM
Steven L. Smith
King of the House Home Inspection, Inc. - Bellingham, WA
Bellingham WA Home Inspector

After teaching for 12 years, I believe that many of those people who claim they don't test well are simply covering for the fact they don't know their stuff and do lousy on the exam. I have had conversations with students who say they don't test well.  Sure, it happens, but it is an easy excuse and many of them who don't test well, also, don't discuss the material casually with any more impressive breadth of knowledge. Experience is important, but only if it comes from a good foundation. Doing something wrong for 20 years only ingrains poor habits. And, as far as the state goes, if they are trying to get a law in place, I see no option but testing everyone. You cannot leave someone out because he has been doing it a long time. You have to know he can pass the test. As for the test, I am not surprised you only got 7 wrong, that is fully possible and that is around the number our average graduated student misses. If it is like this state, the woman you spoke with was the procter and has no clue as to how hard the tests are. Maybe she thought you were taking the PE test. At my end I am doing quite well, but I am fully retired except for BTC for maybe another year or two.

Aug 30, 2017 04:10 PM
Brad Gotham
Granite Peak Inspection, Inc. - Colville, WA

I attended this class way back in 2009. I had almost 30 years of construction experience prior to that, I had no Idea of the things I didn't know, but I studied hard and passed the State test first try. My home inspection business is now in its eighth year of operation and successful. Thanks Guys!

Oct 07, 2017 10:50 AM
Steven L. Smith
King of the House Home Inspection, Inc. - Bellingham, WA
Bellingham WA Home Inspector

We have just put together most of the schedule for 2018 classes, I will be posting those soon.   

                                 

Oct 29, 2017 10:33 PM