The Master Inspector Certification Board is a separate non-profit organization that has been awarded tax exempt status. It is one of InterNACHI’s many strategic partners.
InterNACHI believes it is in our members’ best interests’ to host CMI’s message board here, on a dedicated forum, just as we do for other organizations such as IAC2, TPREIA, the Contractor’s Association, ORCIA, etc. It is also the de facto message board for industry vendors. We also work hard to make sure that industry news (new legislation, new products, new services, events, etc.) is announced here first. Our message board also provides the interaction between course developers, subject matter experts and students so that they can get help in the middle of our courses. We also use our message board for one-site emergency member-to-member help. We also use it to sort out technical inspection issues. We also use it to procure and provide special deals and discounts. We also use it to guinea pig ideas and programs and to beta-test stuff. And lastly, we try to make it fun with political discussions, online parties, ethics debates, door prizes, etc.
We sought to have InterNACHI’s message board become the inspection industry message board. Judging by the number of posts, number of threads, number of registered users and amount of traffic it gets… we’ve succeeded.
There was a time in the industry … prior to the widespread use of state licensing of home inspectors … when one had to depend upon his association for his credentials.
NACHI members were considered as second-rate due to the unproctored exam and unvalidated membership requirements … and the lack of an ability to tell apart the experienced inspector from the newby with his first set of batteries still fresh in his flashlight. (This problem still exists among licensed inspectors, but at the time, there were very few of them).
When CMI was originally introduced by Nick, it was a designation that would be exclusive to NACHI members who actually met certain criteria that a newby couldn’t.
The members overwhelmingly objected to it since it would have been, in fact, a membership tier distinction much like the ASHI designation (at the time) of “Member” and “Associate”.
Nick was unhappy and chided the members for turning down what he thought to be an exclusive money making title and reluctantly opened it to all home inspectors who qualified, but it has never been any secret that it was (and still is) a Gromicko Enterprise. For example, no source outside of the NACHI message board has ever been used to communicate anything from or about CMI, to include fee increases. There is a virtual absence of discussion about it within any association outside of NACHI.
Accordingly, it still serves to set apart a NACHI member who has been in business for three years from the NACHI member who is still waiting for his second paid home inspection.
Correct. To be awarded our tax-exempt status and our Federal Certification mark from U.S. Patent Office, I was forced to open the designation up to all inspectors, but I basically do my best to keep it a secret from non-InterNACHI members. Jeff has assured me that I am under no IRS obligation to alert non-members to the financial advantages of becoming a Certified Master Inspector. I’ve done my best to reserve it (within the confines of the law) for InterNACHI members only.
That it does, but that in and of itself doesn’t put any money in our members’ bank accounts. CMI is a tool. A tool unfortunately unavailable to most InterNACHI members. And a tool unfortunately available to many non-members.
I DO BELIEVE CMIs are accepted and rumor is They could also be accepted in Ontario
A CMI has been accepted in Alberta able to do inspections where most others have to write an exam .
CMIs have been accepted to Procter other Homies and also are able to Procter the exam
Roy, I believe you mean “accepted” not “excepted” which would have the opposite meaning of the one you are trying to convey, but yes, I understand your point. I did forget to mention yet another advantage of CMI and that is grandfathering in licensing. Thanks for reminding me. But, icing on the cake IMHO. The cake is that CMI makes CMIs money. Let them say what they will, the dang thing works.
The cake is that CMI makes CMIs money. Let them say what they will, the dang thing works.
There was a time when you said that about being a NACHI member.
Guess that is not the case anymore ?
I would rather have an ASHI and a NACHI logo together than a NACHI and CMI logo .
CMI has no special education or CE while being a member of both ASHI and NACHI would give one twice as much training.
Lets ask…How many Google ads can I run for $2500 ?
Lets ask…How much IR training can I get for $2500 ?
Lets ask…How many flyers,websites,can I get for $2500 ?
Lets ask… How many years of NACHI membership can I get for $2500 ?
Special question for Nick.
Should I wish to decide should is it better to quit NACHI and join CMI or stay NACHI and forget CMI.
Do not say both as I am specifically asking if between one or the other.
P.S CMI is here because the CMI site had crickets chirping.
CMI is not yet $2,500;00
You passed up CMI at ~$300;00
You Passed up CMI at ~$1,000;00
Why are you asking about $2,500;00
You know you are not even considering becoming a CMI
I do believe you have ridiculed and made fun of us who are satisfied and happy with the CMI .
I wonder why you continue to attack the idea of the CMI. is Bob mad at Bob for not becoming a CMI.
I do not remember I and Other CMIs making fun of you for not becoming a CMI .
It is has been no loss to me with you not becoming a CMI.
I do not remember any one saying you can not make money with out being a CMI.
Since you would have no access to education which acconts for a large percentage of knowledge from InterNachi, I would say InterNachi.
BTW if you plan to spend 2500 on any of the listed areas I would say best to spend that on CMI and make up for the membership each year.
Roy I replied to Meeker and now Nick yet both times you became a busy body trying to pretend you were them as if you were some official mouthpiece for CMI.
Please show me the paperwork making you an official proctor.
Nobody asked you anything.
(what is your motivation here and should I now consider you my enemy)
My memory is long.
In Kansas City, CMI means “do not suggest any of those inspectors to any of your clients. They write detailed reports, and will always alarm your home buyer into not purchasing any home. Then, you lose your home sale, your commissions, and will have to work harder at finding your client another home. Don’t worry about any liability, because we sell every home as is, and offer home warranties anyway”.
Sad the mindset of REA’s these days. Hunger has caused many things to happen out of the ordinary.
No, it is certainly the case for InterNACHI membership. If you tried on your own to procure the competitive advantages, the marketing, the education, etc that InterNACHI provides, it would cost you over $100K IMHO. InterNACHI is a total no-brainer.
No, ASHI has no education that I know of. They host a few over-priced educational events where you can go and pay for courses, but I don’t count that in a world where inspector education is free. CMI isn’t a school, so if you need education, CMI is not the place to look.
You can’t buy any google ads that say you are a Certified Master Inspector for $2,500 if you aren’t one. The ad isn’t the kicker, anyone can buy an ad to reach consumers. But will it convert? The three little words “Certified Master Inspector” converts consumers into paying clients.
Way more than any inspector would ever need. IR isn’t rocket science.
None that say you are a Certified Master Inspector if you aren’t one.
At today’s membership rates, only about 5 years. For $1,000 you can be a CMI forever.
I would say InterNACHI. The two are sequential. InterNACHI with its www.nachi.org/education and its www.nachi.org/benefits has become a necessity for all inspectors IMHO. CMI isn’t a trade association and doesn’t offer education or benefits. It is a professional designation. The highest professional designation in the inspection industry.
CMI does only one thing and it does it very well (but you have to write the words out “CERTIFIED MASTER INSPECTOR”). It causes consumers to hire you and pay you more. This is undisputed. If that’s of value to you, apply. If it isn’t, don’t apply. It’s the world’s easiest business decision.
It behooves inspectors to understand that … as Nick has pointed out, it is the phrase “Certified Master Inspector” and all that it implies … that sells. Not the qualifying criteria.
Those combination of words … registered as a trademark by Nick … has power in marketing material.
As many have pointed out in another thread … creating a video touting the minimum standards to qualify as a CMI diminishes it, tremendously.
Let the phrase create something significant in the mind of the consumer and do its work within their own imagination. This is the secret behind the designation. Not its criteria.
Roy I replied to Meeker and now Nick yet both times you became a busy body trying to pretend you were them as if you were some official mouthpiece for CMI.
Please show me the paperwork making you an official proctor.
Nobody asked you anything.
(what is your motivation here and should I now consider you my enemy) My memory is long**./**QUOTE]
Gee I saw a open post did not see it was directed to NICK .
I see no reason why you are being a smart mouth and it is your Choice in making me your enemy ,
Have no idea what you would gain by that.
For some reason I thought this was an open forum for all to use .
Consumers make inspector choice decisions in 5 to 15 seconds. No sense giving them a 10-page resume, they won’t read it anyway (some barely read their inspection reports). I wish consumers spent an hour researching inspectors before they made their choice. I’d be happy with 1/2 hour. I’d be happy with 10 minutes. I’d be happy with 2 minutes. But in reality, many of them spend a few seconds.
And like you eloquently explained, that’s why those three little words work.
Does that mean you’d choose a Certified Master Inspector over an inspector who offers free recalls on appliances in exchange for releasing your personal information to Alarm Salesmen?
Yes, I’d personally choose a CMI every time over every other inspector. Chris just had another home inspection done in Philly and he also chose from the CMI list. Is every CMI the best inspector in the world? No. But at least they’ve been in the profession for 3 years and did a minimum combination of inspections and continuing education.
