How to Start a Multi-Inspector Firm by Ian Robertson, Inspector Toolbelt
Let’s
face it, starting a multi-inspector firm has at least crossed the mind of most (if not all) home inspectors. Whether we started out looking for something new, a second career, following in the family business, or however else—we likely have thought about it. But the question is—how do you do it? Many of us may be great home inspectors but simply lack experience in going about something like starting a multi-inspector firm. Well, I have started three of them, and I will tell you I was nervous every time—but all three inspection companies are successful today. So how did we go about it? Well, be prepared—there is going to be a lot of information below, because there are a lot of facets to starting a multi-inspector firm. But while there is a lot to learn, it is likely not as hard as you may think. So first of all, let’s talk about the roadblocks and how to overcome them. Then we will talk about the nuts and bolts of things: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Overcoming the initial obstacles. Having the proper company structure. How/ how much to pay your inspectors. How to lead and keep your inspectors from leaving. Transition from “home inspector” to “business owner and manager.”
Overcoming Obstacles There are a lot of “obstacles” to overcome to transition from a single inspector to a multi-inspector firm. But obstacles are just roadblocks to keep the unambitious from crowding out your success. If you want it badly enough, you can overcome any obstacle. The biggest roadblocks to a multi-inspector firm mostly come down to the following. Fear & Money: Fear is probably the biggest factor. Having enough work—making sure you have enough inspections for another inspector or two. Having enough capital is another. First, let’s talk about fear. Fear is one of the biggest reasons people don’t do things in life. People are anxious about money, failure, people judging them, and what could happen. You know what though, if you are not at least slightly uncomfortable with something, you probably are not pushing hard Ian Robertson is a veteran home inspector, owner of three inspection companies, owner of Full View Home Inspector Marketing, and one of the founders of Inspector Toolbelt. Inspector Toolbelt is simple administrative and scheduling software for home inspectors that makes running your inspection business easy and automated.
22 Working RE Inspector Winter/Spring 2021
enough. The best opportunities in life are the ones where fear stops many other people. Being anxious is basically worrying about things that could happen—but that may never happen. But what if you failed? So what… Thomas Edison didn’t invent the light bulb the first time. Walt Disney tanked on several ventures at first. The first American colonies all failed at first. Imagine if they had all given up. Don’t give in to fear—face it, look for it, and beat the tar out of it. Fear has no place in a multi-inspector firm. Is It Time? Now that I am done with my soapbox speech about fear, let’s talk about having enough work. Recently, a home inspector called me and said: “I am really busy and want to hire another inspector, how do I do that?” Whoa Nelly, hang on a second, I said. Just going out and hiring another inspector without planning is no way to go about it. So, I started asking questions: how many inspections did you do this year so far? Have you been turning down inspections? If so, how many did you turn down this month? How about how many you turned down this year? Those questions are important because it turns out he wasn’t ready. He had only turned down a couple of inspections recently and was really busy—because it was the busy season. He hadn’t done as many inspections as he had thought; in fact, he didn’t even know how many he had done. Don’t let the “busy season fever” get to you. Step back and look at the numbers. In that vein, keep track of growth, how many inspections you do, how many you turn down, etc. From my experience, once you get to at least 400–500 inspections a year is when you can take on another inspector. Some may disagree but it has always worked for me. The only exception to that is if you are doing high dollar inspections. We hired a second inspector once because our average inspection fee was almost $1,000 (that company does a lot of specialty inspections), so that was an exception. If you price your services too low, then you will need to do more.
