Home Buyers,

Montana has no licensing requirements for home inspectors. Anyone can start inspecting without formal training or testing, This site is dedicated to help home buyers find the most competent, certified Home Inspectors in the State of Montana.  Inspectors listed on this site are members in good standing with  National Association of Home Inspectors  (NAHI) or American Society of Home Inspectors, (ASHI)   Protect your investment by hiring a member of these two nationally recognized organizations. Beware of any inspector claiming to be certified by any other organization!  NAHI & ASHI  are the only two national organizations requiring inspectors to show practical knowledge and pass the "National Home Inspectors Exam."  If you can't fine an inspector on our site, follow the six tips below.

Looking for a Certified Montana Home Inspector, click on Find  Home Inspectors. The Inspector locator is designed to give you a choice of home inspectors in your area. 

Thank You

George Adams II

Choosing a Home Inspector is Not Tricky Business!  By following these six simple steps, you can help to ensure that you are making the right choice when selecting a Home Inspector. 1. Professional Affiliations & Certifications Be sure that the Inspector you retain has professional affiliations and certifications through nationally recognized organizations such as NAHI (National Association of Home Inspectors), ASHI ( American Society Of Home Inspectors, ICC (International Code Council), EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), NEHA (National Environmental Health Association), etc. This information will help to give you insight into the background, and depth of industry involvement of the Inspector you plan to hire. Membership in a recognized association of home inspectors, such as the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) or the National Association of Home Inspectors (NAHI), is commonly held to be a measure of professionalism among home inspectors.  Look Only For NAHI - ASHI Inspectors. (Logos are to the left) Don’t be confused by Home Inspector "certifications" obtained through quick study courses (sometimes two weeks or less) or sold through trade organizations such as (NACHI) National Association Of Certified Home Inspectors. When it is time for you to start looking for a Home Inspector, You might  look on the web or in the Yellow Pages under Home and Building Inspections, ask friends or co-workers, or check out the directories of top national organizations such as NAHI or ASHI for a listing of Inspectors in your area.  We recommend  using only these two organizations, Other associations such as NACHI are no more than diploma mills with meaningless certifications.   After you have a list of names from which to choose, grab a pen and paper and start making some phone calls. Don’t be afraid to ask the "tough" questions. A legitimate Home Inspection Company will appreciate that you are being careful when making your choices, while a marginal one may become defensive.  Remember, Home inspections are a second occupation for many inspectors, and you want to check their back ground! 2. Choose An Inspector With Top Qualifications  A) Choose wisely when selecting your Home Inspector. Direct, "hands-on" experience in building is one of the most important criteria to look for. For instance, a house cannot be dismantled during an inspection, so it is important to have someone with the experience and background who doesn’t have to disassemble a wall to know what’s inside and how it’s put together. A house is made of many different components and systems that are all inter-related and are all supposed to work together. Many of these are hidden from view, and cannot be directly viewed. It is important to choose an inspector who has experience in home-building, from the ground up, and has been involved in the installation and layout of these systems.  2) Building Code Certification: Although code certification is not a professional requirement for home inspectors, some inspectors acquire code credentials to increase their knowledge of potential building defects. This knowledge is unquestionably beneficial.  The Montana Code Authority is ICC (International Code Council) 3. Experience, Experience, Experience Years of dedicated practice can produce home inspectors with the ability to discover defects that would be missed by inspectors with less experience. On the other hand, shortcomings in talent or integrity can diminish the benefits of accumulated experience. Check into how long the Inspector has been in the business, and how many Home Inspections he has performed. There is no equivalent to experience! Do you really want someone inspecting your home who is doing this "part-time", or has only been performing inspections for a year or two?  Don’t be confused by Home Inspector "certifications" obtained through quick study courses (sometimes two weeks or less) or sold through trade organizations such as (AII) American Institute of Inspectors. (ITA) Inspection Training Associates. (NACHI) National Association Of Certified Home Inspectors. 4. Be Sure To Obtain A Written Report Sample reports provide clues as to the thoroughness of a home inspector. On the other hand, anyone can purchase a high-tech report writing system. The report may look great, but this does not mean there is a qualified inspector behind the printed page. Furthermore, sample reports only show the problems that were found by the inspector, not the ones that were missed. Be sure that your Home Inspector provides a detailed written report, not a hand written checklist with stock responses that is given to you at the end of the inspection. A checklist can be difficult to interpret and to read, and may be void of many of the details and advice you need. A computer-generated report, which offers a combination of the checklist and a narrative reporting formats, and which includes specific comments and photos of each home An Inspection Report should encompass three basic areas: Overview – A detailed picture of the house on the day of the inspection, itemizing all the major components and their condition. Maintenance Items – A listing of items in need of normal maintenance or attention. This list will allow you to be pro-active in your approach to home maintenance, and hopefully, minimize your risk of being blind-sided by an unexpected expense you could have been saving for, if you had known about it. Major Repair Items – This is any defect with the potential to present a significant expense to you, in the near term. These items should be clearly identified. The Inspection and Report should give you the information that you, as the buyer, need to make an informed decision about your new purchase. 5. Errors and Omissions Insurance Be sure to ask the inspector about their liability insurance coverage including "errors and omissions"  E&O insurance is often stressed as an important consideration when hiring a home inspector. If an inspector fails to report a major defect, the deep pocket of an insurance company may be the only recourse. On the other hand, some of the most qualified home inspectors forego this insurance because deep pockets can be an attraction to litigious attorneys. 6. Price Why is price last on the list? It is important to ask yourself this question… "Do you really want to go bargain hunting for the Inspector who will do the job for the least amount of money?" -or- "Is it important to hire the most qualified?" Of course one should always try to be budget conscious, but when hiring a Home Inspector, you should always search for the most qualified and most experienced person you can find. What is a $25 or $50 difference in price compared to your potential exposure if, due to inexperience, your "low budget" inspector overlooks an expensive defect? On balance, you will find that hiring the best doesn’t cost, it pays!

Set up the home inspection yourself rather than allowing your real estate agent to make the arrangements. 

Good Morning America home inspector warning:
Go outside of real estate office for your home inspector

Looking for a Certified Montana Home Inspector, click on Find Inspector.  The Inspector locator is designed to give you a choice of home inspectors in your area. 

Whether you are buying a new home, investment property, selling your existing home or just need to know more facts about homes in general, click on Consumer Information button.

 We are in the process of adding new links to: Montana Realtors, Surveyors, Lenders, Title Companies, Insurance, Radon Mitigation Companies. Click on    Other Professional Services.

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