How to become a home inspector in Mississippi

To become a home inspector in Mississippi, you need a license from the Mississippi Home Inspection Division of the Real Estate Appraisal Board. You must be 21, finish a 60-hour course, pass the NHIE, clear a fingerprint check, and carry $250,000 each of general liability and errors and omissions insurance.

NHIE requiredChecked on October 14, 2026. Updated October 27, 2026

Mississippi at a glance

Mississippi at a glance
Item	Mississippi
Exam	The NHIE through PSI. The Division's forms page says you must pass it to get your license.
Exam fee	$225 per attempt, with 30 days between tries
Education	60 hours of pre-license education
Field work	None required
Insurance	General liability of $250,000 and errors and omissions of $250,000 per occurrence, in your own name
Other	Age 21, a high school diploma or equivalent, and fingerprints for a state and FBI check
Application fee	$500: a $175 application fee and a $325 license fee
Renewal	Every 2 years, with 20 hours of continuing education and a new fingerprint check

The licensing body is the Mississippi Home Inspection Division, Mississippi Real Estate Appraisal Board. Fees and rules change, so check them with the state before you pay for anything.

Steps to a Mississippi license

01
Finish 60 hours of pre-license education.
02
Pass the National Home Inspector Examination through PSI.
03
Buy general liability and errors and omissions insurance of $250,000 each, with the Division as certificate holder.
04
Send the notarized application and pledge form, photos, your certificates, and $500 to the Division.
05
Once the application is approved, the Division mails you a fingerprint card for the state and FBI background check.

Who licenses home inspectors now

Since July 1, 2024, the Mississippi Real Estate Appraisal Board has licensed home inspectors through its Home Inspection Division. The Home Inspector Regulatory Board advises it. Before that, the Real Estate Commission ran the program, so older guides point to the wrong agency.

An inspector licensed in another state can apply by reciprocity for a $50 application fee plus the $325 license fee.

How long it takes in Mississippi

Mississippi asks for a 60-hour course and a passing NHIE score, with no field work set by rule. Mississippi sets no minimum time; the course hours are the floor. By law, the board must accept or reject your application within 30 days of receiving it.

Home inspector pay in Mississippi

BLS puts the median pay for construction and building inspectors in Mississippi at $50,250 a year in May 2025, against $74,690 for the whole country. BLS counts about 800 people in that job in the state, and home inspectors are one specialty in the group, next to city and county code inspectors.

The number leaves out the self-employed. An inspector who owns the business is self-employed, so that pay isn't in it. For what owners report, see how much home inspectors make.

Mississippi next to the other states

NHIE required
NHIE accepted
State exam only
License, no exam
No state license
Adds a state section

Mississippi is ringed. Each square opens that state's page.

More on the exam

Questions people ask

Does Mississippi use the NHIE?

Yes. The law leaves the exam to the board, and the Division's forms page says you must pass the NHIE for your basic license.

How old do you have to be to be a home inspector in Mississippi?

21. That is older than most states, which set 18.

Who licenses home inspectors in Mississippi?

The Mississippi Home Inspection Division of the Real Estate Appraisal Board, since July 1, 2024.

How long does it take to become a home inspector in Mississippi?

Mississippi asks for a 60-hour course and a passing NHIE score, with no field work set by rule. Mississippi sets no minimum time; the course hours are the floor. By law, the board must accept or reject your application within 30 days of receiving it.

How much do home inspectors make in Mississippi?

BLS publishes no separate figure for home inspectors. It counts them with construction and building inspectors, whose median pay in Mississippi was $50,250 a year in May 2025. That figure leaves out the self-employed, which includes an inspector who owns the business.

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