The following are a few simple qualifying questions you should ask of your home inspector:

1. What issues/aspects does a home inspection cover?

Many states have requirements or guidelines for inspector's reports, as well as standards of practice.  You should make sure that the inspector you retain follows these guidelines or requirements.  Additionally you should be able to review the guidelines in advance.  Additionally, you should be able to request that the inspector focus on certain areas of the home where you might have specific requests or concerns.

2. How many inspections has the inspector performed and over what period of time?

The inspector should be able to detail a body-work over their career as an inspector, provide you a sample report as well as a few referrals from previous inspections.

3. What are the inspector's professional training credentials?

While many contractors and builders of residential properties do have good experience to draw upon, home inspection is a specific skill and your inspector should have been professionally trained in the art of home inspection.

4. Does the inspector also perform repairs and maintenance?

While there is a bit of overlap between these skill-sets, it's important that your inspector be focused on providing professional home inspections.  If they perform other services, be watchful of a conflict of interest.

5. What is the turn-around time for a typical inspection?

Typically, an inspector will spend approximately 2-3 hours at the property.  As you might expect, this can vary quite a bit based on the size of the subject property.  Many inspectors will then issue a final a report within a day or two, some as quickly as the same day.

6. What is the cost?

Home inspection costs can vary widely.  Typically, the cost of the inspection is related to the size or list price of the property.  Obviously, larger properties require a bit more time to complete the inspection.  Typical costs can range between $300 and $500.

7. Can I attend the inspection?

Most inspectors don't mind the participation of the client in the inspection.  It can be a good tool for understanding what work might need to be done to the property before or after the sale.  However it's important to remember that they can keep their costs down only if they are allowed to do their work in an efficient manner.

8. Is the inspector active in a professional home inspector association?

Check to see if the association has any standards you can review to insure that the inspector you retain provides the services you need.

9. When was their last continuing education class?

New information comes available daily and even the best inspectors can't keep up with it all.  Continuing education insures that they remain up to date with the key aspects of the inspection process and what they should be looking for.