Home Inspector Training – Washington State

*** Nonprofit Home Inspections has been approved by the Department of Licensing to offer training online due to Covid-19 restrictions. All coursework will be provided online until further notice. ***

Home Inspector Training – Washington State: Washington home inspector training by a board approved educational provider is required for individuals hoping to become licensed home inspectors in Washington state. Nonprofit Home Inspections has been approved by the Washington State Department of Licensing as one of the few authorized educational providers for Washington home inspector training. As educational partners with InterNACHI, the nation’s largest home inspector association, Nonprofit Home Inspections is able to help you fulfill the requirements to become a licensed home inspector in the State of Washington.

There are a number of steps required to become a home inspector in Washington. To begin with, you are required to take a 120 hour, board approved home inspector training course. You must also have 40 hours of field training with a licensed and experienced home inspector. Nonprofit Home Inspections provides the required 120 hour “Fundamentals of Home Inspection” course, which is licensed by the State of Washington. In addition, we provide the 40 hours of required field training. Once you have completed our course, you will be eligible to sit for the national home inspector examination. Our course includes a significant amount of exam preparation and daily reinforcement in order to prepare you for successfully taking the exam. Upon passing your exam, you will then be able to send in your license application and payment in order to become a home inspector in Washington.

In 2019, the pass rate for the national exam for all Washington home inspector schools was 57%

The National Home Inspector Examination is hard.

We prepare you to pass the first time.

Nonprofit Home Inspections had a 94% pass rate for the national exam in 2019!

Nonprofit Home Inspections has the highest national exam passing rate for Washington home inspector schools with 5 or more students!

120 Hours of Instruction

Taught by Licensed Inspectors

Fulfill your Washington State licensing requirements

40 Hours of Field Training with Experienced Inspectors

Watch and learn. See how it's done.

There is no substitute for experience.

Make sure your instructor is a licensed home inspector in Washington.

Earn 12 Additional Certifications

Maximize your time

Set yourself apart from the competition

Hit the ground running and give outstanding home inspections.

Harness Inspection Technology

Give better inspections with advanced tools.

Introduction to thermal imaging, radon testing, blower door tests and more.

We provide you with the tools to give better inspections for your clients.

How To Become A Home Inspector In Washington State

In addition to fulfilling the educational requirements for Washington home inspector training, students who complete our course will have earned the following certifications including the coveted designation a Certified Professional Inspector® or CPI®.  This allows you to hit the ground running, providing your clients with a valuable service while distinguishing yourself from the competition.  Our experienced instructors are also practicing home inspectors that want to help you provide a valuable service for your clients as they make some of the most important decisions in their lives.  It’s a responsibility we take seriously in our training for Washington home inspectors, and a consideration that will help you become successful with minimal down time.

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Certified and licensed instructors teaching home inspection classes for Washington's home inspectors.

Washington Home Inspector Certification – Advanced Technology

In addition to fulfilling the training requirements to become a licensed home inspector in Washington, Nonprofit Home Inspections introduces students to cutting edge home inspection technology including thermal imaging, radon testing, mold testing, sewer scopes and more.  Maximize your time while learning additional skills that will help you become an outstanding home inspector.

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Begin learning how to test for radon in Vancouver, Washington and the surrounding communities.
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Learn by watching a real home inspection during home inspection field training.

Home Inspector Training Cost

Fundamentals of Home Inspection

$2,495
  • Fulfill the educational requirements to become a home inspector in Washington.  This fast tracked course is designed to maximize your time and to prepare you to start a career as a home inspector in Washington.

Signup

Field Training

$1,000
  • Field training on actual inspections (first person point of view) to get you up to speed quickly.  Forty hours of field training with an experienced and licensed home inspector is required for Washington home inspector applicants.

Signup

Home Inspection Courses Taught By Licensed Inspectors

Washington Home Inspector Training

Washington Home Inspector Training – Additional Benefits

In addition to leveraging InterNACHI’s proven curriculum for your Washington home inspector training program, Nonprofit Home Inspections’ course offers you the following course benefits so that you can hit the ground running.  As a nonprofit organization, our goal is to help you provide the best services to our shared community.  By introducing you to modern home inspection technology, you will have a firm footing for your entry into the home inspection industry.  Good home inspections can save lives — we want you to be prepared to make a difference.

  • 1 Month Free Membership to InterNACHI (new members)

  • Copy of the National Home Inspector Examination “Structural Systems & Business” Manual

  • Copy of the National Home Inspector Examination “Mechanical Systems & NHIE Content” Manual

  • Free Business Logo Design by InterNACHI

Home Inspection Classes (Washington) – Schedule

Our course consists of both the two week long board approved “Fundamentals of Home Inspection” course and one week of field training that is required by the State of Washington. If you would like, you can take field training elsewhere, but we do not offer field training as a stand alone training (it’s only available if you take our course).

*** Because of the Covid-19 outbreak, we have been authorized to conduct our home inspection training remotely. The Washington State Department of Licensing has authorized us to provide these courses online until further notice. ***

*** We only offer field training for students who have taken our “Fundamentals of Home Inspection” course and do not offer it for students who have taken this course elsewhere. If you are considering signing up for a course elsewhere, make sure they offer field training opportunities as well as it is extremely difficult to get this training on your own. ***

Our training is held in Vancouver, Washington on the following dates:

February 19th, 2024 – March 1st, 2024
May 6th, 2024 – May 17th, 2024
September 9th, 2024 – September 20th, 2024
December 2nd, 2024 – December 13th, 2024

Field training is scheduled for the following dates:

March 4th, 2024 – March 8th, 2024
May 20th, 2024 – May 24th, 2024
September 23rd, 2024 – September 27th, 2024
December 16th, 2024 – December 20th, 2024

Week 1 in the courses are Monday through Saturday, and Week 2 in the courses are Monday through Friday. The classes meet daily from 7:30am until 6:30pm. Field training is held during Week 3 Monday through Friday 9am to 5:30pm.

To register, please click on the “Register Now” button. A $1,000 deposit is required to hold your spot in the class. The balance of tuition is due on the first day of the class.

Once you register, you will be sent information on how to register with InterNACHI for your 1 month free membership and will be given a course syllabus. When you register with InterNACHI, they will ask for a credit card number, but you can cancel prior to the end of your month membership so that you don’t get charged anything.

If the class you want is full, we can put you on the wait list. Just send us an email and let us know you are interested.

Links to Resources for Becoming a Home Inspector In Washington

Washington State Department of Licensing page for Home Inspectors

Examination Catalog for students in Washington Home Inspector Candidates (PSI Testing)

Laws and Rules for Home Inspectors in Washington

The Washington Home Inspector Law Book

Training for Government Agencies

Nonprofit Home Inspections is an Education Provider (#389459) for the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. We help the state retrain injured workers for new careers as licensed home inspectors.

Nonprofit Home Inspections is an Education Provider for the Washington State Employment Security Department. We help the government by retraining unemployed Washington residents for new careers as licensed home inspectors.

Nonprofit Home Inspections is an educational provider for the Washington State Employment Security Department.

Frequently Asked Questions

Our classrooms are located in our Vancouver offices located at 5501 NE 109th Ct, Ste F, Vancouver, WA 98862.

Students should bring a laptop and / or tablet computer, headphones, lunch, snacks and note taking materials.

For field training, it is important to wear professional work clothes (shorts, t-shirts, etc. will not be allowed on site).  A complete list of field training guidelines will be provided to each student prior to the start of class.

There are only a few companies licensed to provide board approved training for Washington state home inspectors.  A lot of the online educational programs do not qualify for Washington because they have not been board approved and are not classroom based instruction.  Our course leverages some of the best educational content available through our educational partner, InterNACHI, with our in-class live instruction.  Our class introduces our students to cutting edge technology including the use of thermal imaging cameras, radon monitors, sewer scopes and more.  Our comprehensive training helps home inspectors exceed the statutory minimum requirements for home inspections, helping to insure better home inspections for the general public.

Construction experience is not required in order to become a licensed home inspector in Washington, but it is extremely helpful in preparing you to understand the terminology and building science associated with home inspections.  If you have not had previous experience working with buildings, sign up for our classes well in advance and begin studying right away.  Once you have registered, we will send you study materials you can access remotely so that you can hit the ground running when the state mandated 120 classroom instruction takes place.

Our Washington state approved Fundamentals of Home Inspection course uses a combination of curriculum we have licensed from InterNACHI (the world’s largest home inspector association) and several hands on break out sessions that will introduce you to additional advanced home inspection concepts including thermal imaging, mold testing, radon testing and more. This structured curriculum combined with individual support as necessary helps prepare students to take the National Home Inspector Examination.

Washington state requires that you complete a 120 hour in-classroom course prior to even be permitted to sit for your state exam.  Online only courses do not fulfill this requirement and will not allow you to take the state exam.  When in doubt, contact the Washington state department of licensing to determine if the educational provider is licensed by the state of Washington to provide the required “Fundamentals of Home Inspection” course. Our course with licensed curriculum from InterNACHI has been approved by the Washington state department of licensing for those wishing to become home inspectors in Washington state.

We understand that working professionals can’t take 3 or 4 weeks off of work to take classes.  As such, we’ve compacted our training into two very solid weeks of instruction that fulfill Washington’s strict requirements for home inspector training.  Because classroom instruction requires a lot of sitting, we have purchased extremely comfortable bonded leather Lazy Boy chairs for every student to use.  We break up the sitting portion of class with actual home inspections in the area and hands on demonstrations.  Our concentrated curriculum is the fastest and most effective way to jump start your career as a licensed home inspector in Washington state.

No. Our class is focused on helping to prepare students to pass their home inspector exams and to give students a base of knowledge that they can use to start a career in the home inspection industry. Becoming a successful home inspector takes a significant amount of on-going education and effort. Through our partnership with InterNACHI, our students are able to access a number of additional advanced courses that far exceed the state’s minimum requirements for home inspectors. After passing their exams, new home inspectors should continually strive to increase their skill set by taking additional classes. Students should also consider working with additional small support groups that help start up successful small businesses.

Our field training opportunities and ride alongs build on concepts covered in class, so we are only able to conduct field training for individuals who are enrolled in our courses. We receive phone call frequently from students who have taken similar courses elsewhere, but just want field training that their school doesn’t provide. Before signing up with any home inspector school in Washington, make sure they also offer field training opportunities as it is extremely difficult to get that experience on your own.

Yes, beginning in January of 2022, the State of Washington will be offering free pre-authorization for professional licenses. This is to help prospective students make sure that they will be able to get a license after they complete training. Because the state may prevent some applicants from getting a license based on a related criminal record, it is wise to contact them before spending money on courses and pre-licensing requirements. For more information, visit Washington’s website for becoming a home inspector: https://www.dol.wa.gov/business/homeinspectors/hilicense.html

No. Becoming a home inspector is hard work and not everyone will succeed. In addition, if you are starting a new business on your own, you will not only need to be an excellent home inspector, but will need good business management skills, marketing skills, interpersonal skills, etc. We do have one of the highest pass rates in the region for home inspector schools, but that does not guarantee that you will be successful as a home inspector. However, if you can’t pass the test, nothing else matters. That is why we focus on preparing our students to pass the exam first and foremost. We are happy to answers start up questions and to provide mentoring for our students after they have passed the test and are working on establishing their business.

Please visit https://www.dol.wa.gov/business/homeinspectors/hilicense.html to find out more about the rules and regulations associated with becoming a home inspector in Washington.

We do not recommend going into debt in order to become a home inspector. While being a home inspector can be a very fulfilling and lucrative career for some, it can be extremely difficult for others. Like any small business, there will also likely be unexpected expenses while getting started, so having a strong financial footing will better help you make your new home inspection business successful.

Home Inspector Training Washington StateNonprofit Home Inspections is an educational partner of InterNACHI, the world’s largest home inspector association.