**Membership Application Information **PDF Format
One of the major goals involved in the development of CAHPI-Atlantic, has been to introduce a high degree of professionalism into the home inspection field. As with the trades and professions, it’s simply not reasonable to accept into our membership those who are not specifically trained for the inspection work involved.
Although sharing many commonalities, performing professional home inspections draws on a much broader field then simply having a background in one of the building trades. Clients, financial institutions, professional real estate personnel, professional builders, governments, and so forth, have and continue to insist on much more.
One of the steps adopted by CAHPI-Atlantic has been to ensure that all applicants are able to “bring something to the table” in terms of education and/or applicable background training if they wish to become involved in the professional home inspection field.
Therefore, before becoming a member of CAHPI-Atlantic, all potential applicants must submit proof of having a minimum of ten points from the following:
**Prior Certified training 5 Points **
a certificate indicating that the applicant has successfully completed the requirements for one of the certified trades
**Full Recognized Home Inspection course 7 Points **
a certificate (copy) as proof of having completed the full (complete) home inspection course provided by such recognized training institutions such as Carson-Dunlop, Humber College, George Brown, and so forth.
New institutions will be recognized and added as the information becomes available. Generally, the outlets which advertise in magazines and on “blow ins” and mail outs are not acceptable to use for this requirement.
**Errors & Omissions Insurance 4 Points **
proof of carrying current Errors & Omissions Insurance which covers home inspectors
**Defect Recognition and Reporting Course 3 Points **
successful completion of course
copy of certificate required as proof
**Successful Completion of the CAHI, CAHPI, or ASHI Exams 3 Points **
these exams can be written by contacting the appropriate association
**50 Mentored Inspections 4 Points **
observing and/or helping with 50 or more full home inspections by a CAHPI member
must provide written proof from the CAHPI member (mentor)
inspections observed as part of franchise training do not qualify
**Report Verification: 2 Points **
For applicants who have already been involved with home inspection, they may send two of their reports to CAHPI-Atlantic for verification.
**Franchise Training 3 Points **
Applicants who are part of a recognized franchise, may use their franchise training to account for three of the required points. WETT 3 Points
Applicants who are currently WETT certified Building Official 3 Points
Applicants who provide proof of past service as a building inspector to a city or municipality
**Current First Aid/CPR Certification 1 Point **
Applicant may use St. John Ambulance training (if training occurred within the last three years) for one point toward the required total.
Again, thank you for your interest in CAHPI. Those aspiring to become members should complete and mail in their Application for Membership
*Note: My personal feeling that even 10 points is too low to begin inspecting. I had been quite involved in the WETT system for a number of years in which every certified person takes a core program firstly followed by other courses. My opinion is that similarly in HI, a core program requiring 15 or so points should consist of: (1) a full recognized HI course or be able to challenge their exams, (2) 50 mentored inspections, (3) report verification. Other courses (WETT in particular here is now mandatory; it has been in and out over the years but with a lot of wood burning due to fuel prices, it’s needed again) plus another 200 inspections would be required to become an RHI. *
So If I were starting now with the same experience/courses as I did in 1984, I would have to upgrade to be accepted!!! But experience teaches a lot. With the industry barely starting to reach maturity, you look at it differently if you’ve been in it for awhile and want to become more stringent. Or you can use a system that (1) defers a lot of the ownership of the inspection to the buyers by recommending calling in certified trades all the time ( the buyer can do that also) or (2) is so wordy with clauses that releases you from responsibility as to be 30 pages of legalese and 6-8 of substance. These last 2 items really do not impress the customers but are used by many!!! The waiver clause that limits liability to the value of the fees paid has got to go or be a mandatory disclosure to the client before an appointmnet is booked. Imagine…Yes I want to do your inspection but don’t want to assume much responsibility if I screw up…and Ha! Ha! Ha! you signed this.
WHY IN THE HECK would anybody that wants to be an inspector even attempt to meet all of the above verified requirements, when ALL you have to do is pay 289.00, take an on line quiz, and promise to complete other non -verified requirements to be marketed to the public as a "certified " inspector. :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
Why would anyone have to even try to meet NACHI’s requirements when they need only send a check to ASHI. You need not take any type of test, attend any training, or even know how to spell “home inspection” for your first 250 inspections. It’s great. Not only that, but you get to pretend like you’re somebody, like dan, here.
Busshy your forgetting to address one MAJOR difference .:roll: :roll:
ASHI DOES NOT certify an inspector until an inspector provides ALL required documentation, and verifies the inspector completed all requirements to qualify as a "certified " inspector.
That inspector is ONLY then marketed to the public as a “certified” inspector.
Yes, unfortunately it does take more than 30 min to verify ASHIs requirements and qualifications to be marketed to the public as an ASHI “certified” inspector.
I’m sure the public deserves more “certifed” inspectors like Ms:Jowers inspector, or the Pa. “certifed” inspector that claimed he has a growing business, claimed he needs to add additional insured, and then he states he cannot do inspections due to Pa’s strict requiremnts of 100 inspections:roll: :roll:
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Darn it… I’m getting more like nickey every day by failing to fulfill my promises :twisted: :twisted:
Heading out of town in a few… Promise I will have a reply before end of week end.
Well this post obviously upset some one I got a red for it the first red in a long time .
Of course the giver did not have the courage to leave their name .
NACHI lowballer loses 3… 5/25/07 9:31 PM
It is obvious how the truth upsets some people.
Give a red and run and hide What happened to the ability to ask questions and give your thoughts.
This attitude is exactly why the Canadian Associations are looking at NACHI growing in Canada and the rest stagnating.
This BB deserves to be read by all Canadian Home inspectors so they can really see what they are missing.
Remember Whistler http://www.nachi.org/forum/showthread.php?t=4935</IMG>
I understand where you are going here and to a certain extend I agree. I agree we need to have some form of national standards that dictate and enforce a minumum quality of service. What I disagree with is the false sense of security these associations provide with their terribly low standards of practice, toothless enforcement and the attempts of organizations such as ASHI to be a singular authority. What is going on now does the opposite of protecting the consumer.
The likes of lawyers and doctors seem to have a very comprehensive set of regulations designed to minimize harms to the consumer resulting from incompetance, deficient protocol, etc. All I can say is “seems” because I do not know enough about these professions to be an accurate judge of such a subject. If these professions do in deed have such proper regulation, it is the result of proper design of such regulation, not mere implementation of regulation.
My message in the post you are replying to says that these standards in which we are judged by are deficient, especially as a whole. If there were fair and substantial standards that truly insures the appropriate competance and conduct necessary for providing good home inspection, I’d be all for it. But since all we currently have is associations with agendas compromising this and legislators who merely draft association or “coalition” licensing bills, I feel deregulation coupled with strong public awareness it the only way to go.
Right now, as you have stated, the courts serve as our checks and balances by demanding compensation from the home inspector to the client when the prosecuted inspector is found guilty. While this isn’t a very ideal set up, I could not call this current business climate anarchy.
Why are you assuming that mere licensing solves these problems? My state’s SOP is slightly lower than NACHI’s and the association that basically wrote it- ASHI. How does that provide superior consumer protection?
Exactly! And the test is usually the NHIE, which can be easily passed by an attendee of a “home inspection school” that teaches to the test. And the NHIE is coincidentally ran by A$HI, who is VERY cozy with a certain “educational provider”. Hmmmmm …
"Why are you assuming that mere licensing solves these problems? My state’s SOP is slightly lower than NACHI’s and the association that basically wrote it- ASHI. How does that provide superior consumer protection?"
The SOP’s mean nothing if a person has little or no formal training in the field. They can look at heating system such as a boiler, copy info off a decal and still not know it’s set up without some of the necessary parts such as a backflow valve or that its fire chamber is shot and falling apart. At least everyone will have a minimum level of training. Presently, in an unregulated environment, you have to believe what the HI tells you his credentilas are or do a lot of background checks. As someone has said on this thread, I believe, our time is valuable these days (so why should I have to jump through all these hoops to be a Certified HI…just let me be certified on the net where my training is not verifiable but everyone is honest since this potentially involves a lot of money) We have to get out of lala land!!!
Wouldn’t it be nice to let our children pass their driver’s test by doing the written online with an open book, then having them attest to their driving skills online and they get their license to operate a vehicle in the mail. That’s about what’s happening now with some HI’s. Easier for everyone involved, isn’t it? Hell, we could lay off a lot of gov’t emplyees since they really don’t earn their paychecks for this quite serious service anyway!!
That is my point! How does licensing or “certification” solve this?
How does a multiple choice test that allows you to get over 25 percent of it wrong prove one is qualified, even if it is proctored by some college student watching a televised baseball game at the information desk outside of the testing room?
What good is the quantity of experience when the quality of it is lacking?
Do licensing and certification boards actually give a flying f*ck if their members or licensees are compliant when their checks cash and nobody complains?
Does a driver’s license insure that the holder will be in utter compliance with the laws of the road? Does it insure that none of them will create avoidable accidents?
Has licensing home inspectors prevented my service area from being dominated by the one-hour special inspectors who make a living off of realtor referrals?
If you unwittingly hired a bad home inspector whose glossing over of major problems influenced you to purchase a money pit, would you be comforted by the fact that he passed a proctored exam, held a license and meet some cupcake requirements? Would it make your day to find out that you could not sue him for his malpractice because the licensing law limits his liability to you to two years after the inspection?
Duh… Required HI training provided by experienced professioals in our field, prior to issuing a Lic. to an inspector is a good start:roll: :roll: :roll:
Huh…There is no such thing as an automatic good inspection.
Whats your answer, same as busshys, pass an online quiz and pay some body $289.00 to tell the public that you are the only one qualified to perform their inspection? .:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
BTW… doesn’t it just pis- you off when the ignore option fails to work:D :twisted: :twisted: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
