Can you become a home inspector with no construction experience?

The license rules build the experience in. Many licensing states make field work part of the requirement, done with an inspector who already holds the license. Here are three examples:

• Arizona: 30 parallel inspections with a certified inspector, logged.
• Washington: 40 hours of field training with at least 5 complete inspections and written reports.
• Kentucky: 3 unpaid inspections under a Kentucky inspector, on top of the field hours.

The course is where the systems get taught. Florida's rule, for example, names structure, electrical, HVAC, roof covering, plumbing, interior, exterior, and site conditions. For the hours in each state, see how long it takes and what it costs.

A few states let past work stand in for part of the training. Oregon gives 2 of its 20 points for each 12 months of construction-related work, and 4 for each year as a home inspector. Virginia counts months of full-time qualifying experience toward its points. In both states, classes and supervised inspections can earn the same points.

South Carolina takes a year of supervised home inspection work in place of its 120-hour course. That's inspection work, not construction.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists 5 years or more of related work as typical for construction and building inspectors. That figure covers the whole group, and more than a third of its jobs are with local governments. It isn't a rule in any home inspector license law checked here.

The National Home Inspector Exam (NHIE) puts 70% of its weight on the building systems themselves. That's the part where someone new to houses has the most to learn. For the outline, see NHIE domain weights.