From the responses I’ve been getting, it seems like inspectors don’t want some guy hovering over their shoulder more than they’re worried about aiding competition in their market. I understand, however… I need 25 ride alongs to get the inspector license. Any advice on approaching an inspector for ride alongs?
First: Become a Member of InterNACHI…
Next: Open your wallet. NOTHING is FREE in this world. Time is money. Established Inspectors have invested their time and money into their education. You need to do the same if you want them to share with you!
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Next: Tell us about yourself. Courses taken, location, etc.
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strong text
i respectfully disagree as do other members
i’ve never charge any fee for any ride along or any residential or commercial training
in fact most have earned while they learn & some have even bought lunch
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After reading this….your competition doesn’t have to lose any sleep. Good luck.
Thanks for the reply Martin, do you mind elaborating?
Thanks for the reply David! I’ve taken the AHIT course and I’m taking the national test in about 3 weeks. I live in Richmond, Virginia. I grew up doing make readies small repairs in apartments and spent last summer with a contractor in Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire to be in it everyday. I’m excited to keep learning and getting to work.
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Welcome Vincent. I too did the AHIT route and found out it doesn’t compare to interNACHI’s studies. The interNACHI exam is free to take and will give insight as to what you may or may not know. I took it prior to joining and failed it. So I signed up and took the interNACHI courses. You should try it.
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That’s your right. I’m sure there are just as many that AGREE with me.
I have never charged a fee either… YET… but that policy will be charging very, very soon!
I frequently get one or two inquires a month asking for my time. 99% of these “potential inspectors” have ZERO knowledge or experience, let alone any formal training. I typically will not even attempt to help anyone with ZERO of the above, but have, a few times. In almost every case, they showed up late, not at all, left mid-inspection, or was constantly on their phones… even after I told them to leave them in their vehicles!
Of those that I can verify their alleged knowledge/experience, albeit limited, (often through this very MB), I will pay them an hourly rate based on various reasons. (There are a couple of members on this MB that may verify this, if they wish).
Anyway, with the numbers of NON-members posting on this MB trying to find Ride-alongs or Mentors, (many for free or low-cost), and many of them not being able to find anyone to help them… I stand by my original post above.
Times are changing, in MANY ways. Deal with it, or get run over!
JMHO
If you’re not having any luck locally, you might want to try contacting inspectors in other areas of your state that you won’t be competing with.
Many, if not most inspectors don’t like the idea of training their competition, of course a lot depends on your local market, if you’re in a smaller market I would imagine that there would be more competition for a smaller piece of the pie.
Also, the inspection industry as a whole is finally recovering from the covid fiasco and returning to something that is somewhat normal, many inspectors didn’t make it through the downturn and those that did saw what can happen without notice and may be gun-shy of training what they view as their competition.
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Unfortunately, this was my experience also.
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there’s been some good advice in this thread already and I think you’re smart to realize that “training the competition” isn’t the only hurdle to overcome. The company I work for has been fairly generous with their time to help new inspectors get their ride alongs. But it is a hassle and a risk for inspectors to have someone shadowing them. The shadowing inspector is representing the professional inspectors brand and company when they are tagging along. If they do something dumb or unprofessional, it reflects badly on us.
it never ceases to amaze me how many people couldn’t show up on time, stay reasonably focused and off their phone, and present themselves in a professional manner. We’ve asked right alongs to dress as a professional tradesmen, e.g. wear clean, decent pants and a polo or button down work shirt that doesn’t have a bunch of logos on it. And despite that they’ve shown up in ratty jeans and band concert T-shirts, or worse, political T-shirts.
When you ask inspectors to do ride alongs you really need to be pitching and selling yourself as if you want a job there with them. Don’t just send a quick email as a stranger asking for a favor, give a little elevator pitch. It also may be worthwhile making contacts in the real estate sales and service industry. A real estate agent or a pest control contractor you get to know may be able to connect you with an inspector and/or vouch for you.
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I never found it necessary to charge for a ride along. As for being late, i would meet them at a designated time and they rode with me. If they weren’t on time i would leave without them (never happened). They couldn’t walk home so they were there for the duration. Never had a complaint. I was always thanked.
Ride along gives you both time to talk. Same way you would work with a helper.
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I let 5 different potential inspectors ride with me before I put an end to it.
It was pretty simple instructions. You can come along to learn. Don’t give your opinion or advice to the buyers, sellers, or agents. Keep your business cards at home and don’t solicit your business. Introduce yourself as a new inspector that is learning and don’t mention your business name. Unless instructed, leave your tools alone.
Four of the five were only interested in riding a couple of times. I did not charge these guys anything. The fifth and last one rode for 35-40 inspections. He was getting out of website development. Our agreement was that he would build me a new website in exchange for riding along. The last time he went on an inspection with me, he decided to test a GFCI in a garage. He could not figure out where it tripped so he left it without telling me. I had already tested & reset it earlier. This is the one and only time that I got the call for the freezer full of meat that spoiled. In this case, most of it was an elk. Anyone that has tried or knows someone that has tried getting and filling an elk tag in Colorado understands the significance of this. The seller of the home was way more reasonable that I would have been and understood that mistakes happen. He was upset but appreciated that I was willing to pay for it. Because I offered, he said that he did not want to be compensated. The ride along decided at this point that if it is that easy to screw up as an inspector, that it was probably not the right fit for him. And because his ride along experience no longer benefited him, that building the website would not be worth his time.
That was the last time for me. And for note, not one of the five inspectors made it more than a few months in business.
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Yes, son-in-law hunts elk in Colorado. Hard work.