Hi there!
I am new in the inspection business and wanted to know how you structure your pricing for condos, townhomes and such. I want to be prepared when the opportunity come up.
Thanks
Melissa
Melissa,
You have to price your inspection for what the market will bear, and sometimes higher. Every area is different. As you grow in your business you will be able to raise your prices to where you would reallly like them to be.
Check out your competition and see where they are at.
Also, check out http://www.CostOfBusiness.com - it is well worth the money. Search the board - I think I saw where they were giving NACHI members a discount.
Hi Melissa,
Just remember you need to set an absolute bare minimum that you are willing to do an inspection for regardless how small the condo may be. It’s still a crucial aspect of the real estate transaction and you deserve your fee.
I still go by a sliding scale for condos. Several of the condos I’ve inspected were as large as a house.
Normally, a 1 or 2 bedroom condo here in Northern California with minimal exterior is $250 to $300. As they get bigger, I bump up the price another $50 to $100.
BTW, I still inspect the attic and crawlspace if the condo has one. I don’t charge extra, I just do it. The RE agents will appreciate it.
So if you find lots of problems in the attic or crawlspace that subsequently kill the deal, the RE agents will appreciate it? Hmmmmmmm.
Sorry. It’s a new day. I just couldn’t resist. 
Darn margaritas. :margarit:
The smallest I’ve ever done was a 361-SF condo and a 381-SF house. STANDARD inspections for condos under 500 SF are $179 and $229 for SFRs under 500 SF. For each 500 SF up to 3,000 SF, I add another $50. After 3,000 SF, all bets are off due to multiple systems (two water heaters, four furnaces, etc.).
I don’t distinguish between condos, townhomes, or houses. I charge by square footage and inspect them all in the same way. (I do, however, charge a little less if the sq. ft. is < 2000 and the home is on a slab.)
Thanks everyone, as always lots of food for thought!
Melissa
Thanks, as always alot of food for thought…
Melissa
A large part of an inspection is travel time and reporting time, don’t give away an appointment slot for $200 and miss out on a $400 job that needs to be done at the same time.
The most fun inspection I ever did was a 500 sf penthouse studio in San Francisco with a view of the Bay Bridge. When I got there, the guard let me in and the 1st thing I noticed a pair of woman’s 4" spiked leather boots besides the front door.
I said “hello” and a male voice said “just a minute”. Apparently, the owner had loaned out his place to a friend visiting the City. His “companion” stayed underneath the bed comforter as I did the inspection.
The only thing else I’ll mentioned is that I got paid $300 for 20 minutes of work. And yes, there were still some problems in a $750,000 studio that needed fixing.
That reminds me of the condo that I did down in National City many years ago. As I entered each room, I heard the ol’ wolf whistle. Since all the windows were open, I just thought they were from all the action on the street below. But then I got to the master bedroom walk-in closet, and as I entered it, the wolf whistle was loud, right in my ear. Turns out that each room had a rug in front of the doorway. Under the rug was a pressure-sensitive mat that was connected to a device that played the wolf whistle. Then I get deeper into the master bedroom closet. The deeper I went, the more pumps and boas I found. Finally I got to their picture collection and all their awards for best Drag Queen, best impersonation, best boa, highest pumps, etc. I had a lot of pictures until August 2005 when my hard drive crashed and took them all with it.
I thought it was interesting because their condo was a good 20 miles from Hillcrest, which is our Castro (San Francisco), our Montrose (Houston), our Halstead (Chicago), etc.