Correct, albeit indirectly. PA requires membership in InterNACHI, and InterNACHI requires that you take certain online courses.
If you have experience with non-home inspection software, Word, Excel, etc…you may want to design your own.
I have been to several of the conferences and the courses offered, and you get the best education with the NACHI online course. Even some of the competitors would have to admit that.
BAD advice for a newbie!
You have no idea what constitutes a good report until you are doing this for a while. You need to focus on the job, not trying to reinvent the wheel. When you’re a legitimate veteran, then mess with that stuff, if you’re still around. If you want it, you can buy that cheap carp online all day long.
Keep in mind… you don’t know, what you don’t know, until you know it!
When I was a newbie,after hand typing out my reports, I got a computer and Publisher 97…using Publisher 2010 now for my reports.
As I said, if you are comfortable or well versed in standard programs, you may want to use that. You are going to have a learning curve with all of the home inspection software.
Go to other inspectors sites and download their samples, see if that is what you want your reports to look like, then find software to fit your needs. You will find that this is not a “plug and play” field.
Agreed. I’m working on to moving to word/PDF. My new report will be the way I want it to be and very easy to follow and understand for my clients. If you want to choose software however go with HIP or Home Guage. Both are easy to work with.
Being ***“comfortable or well versed in standard programs” ***is **not content. **So you advocate stealing other inspectors sample reports?
Stick to learing the profession, and when you have the experience to know what and how something goes into a report, then mess with it. Until then, we have enough people producing crap and soiling the reputation of the industry.
But you have been doing this for 4+ years already. You are not a newbie!
Where the F*** did I say to steal someone elses report?
To refresh your memory:
If you design a good report, it will help you learn the profession or at least, guide you in that direction.
Then again, there are those who are so proud of their work…they don’t even display it on their websites!
IMHO -
When you’re new … You got no idea what to say, not say, etc.
Get a inexpensive something to start … Use it for 5-6 months then SEE what you say all the time, never say, etc. Most people are better off BUYING than INVENTING
Jack -
I just Googled for info on PA home inspection licensure and got.
The State of Pennsylvania Requires](http://www.home-inspect.com/legislation.asp#PA):
Full membership in a nationally recognized not for-profit organization that requires 100 or more home inspections to be a member and pass an Exam*.*
Recommended Best Practices for the State of Pennsylvania:
Completion of a Home Inspection training program in the classroom or through a Correspondence Course.
Maintain General Liability and Errors and Omissions insurance coverage.
Correct…
As Nick said,
Membership in NACHI is required by PA Law…
Is that JUST NACHI or is it ANY national association with similar strata?
… are there Organizations other than NACHI?
So, does this mean InterNachi’s online course does not meet the requirement? I am confused now. When I complete the 150 hrs of the online course, pass the exam, and get the proper insurance, am I able to conduct my first inspection??
Does the online training from Nachi qualify as the “correspon course” instead of classroom? Do i have to do 100 inspections to be a member? Please help !
Dan asks:
No, only InterNACHI. In PA, you are required by law to join a “national association.” The law defines that as an association with members in more than 10 states. That reduces the number of qualifying associations to just a couple. Diploma mill ASHI doesn’t count because you can join diploma mill ASHI online in 30 seconds without passing an exam. That leaves InterNACHI and one other association that has no benefits, so in essence you have to join InterNACHI by regulation in PA.
Nick -
I think you’d like to believe that but its not true. NACHI is one of several associations that an inspector can join from what I’m told by Pennsylvania Inspectors.
When I taught a 3 hour CE class in Pittsburg 3 years ago for a Regional Inspection Association, I met some really great NACHI, ASHI and NAHI inspectors. I can’t remember for sure but that might have been the CE class where they had that ATSM group there talking about SoP’s.
Yes, that would be an example of a correspondence course. I recommend a mixture of both, but more importantly, field training with an experienced inspector.