Sliding Scale Fees - Nonprofit Home Inspections

Nonprofit Home Inspections is committed to helping all members of our shared community find safe, affordable, and environmentally friendly housing. As such, all of our services are offered on a sliding scale so that everyone can afford to have healthy homes.

Sliding scale fees are available for clients who’s income is 80% or below the median adjusted family income (a combination of family size and household income). The current levels set by the federal government are below:

Number of People in Your Household	Yearly Gross Household Income (before taxes, etc.)	Monthly Gross Household Income (before taxes, etc.)
1	$41,100	$3,425
2	$46,950	$3,912
3	$52,800	$4,400
4	$58,650	$4,887
5	$63,650	$5,279
6	$68,050	$5,670
7	$72,750	$6,062
8	$77,450	$6,454

Application Process

Determine Eligibility

Please use the chart included on this page to determine if you are eligible for reduced rates based on adjusted family income. Households that have an adjusted family income of 80% or less are eligible for a 50% reduction in all of our home inspection fees. If you are already participating in a similar housing program designed for low or moderate income households, you will likely qualify for our program.

Complete Online Application

If your household qualifies for reduced fees, please complete the online application and submit required documentation as soon as possible. Ideally, this would be completed well in advance of your inspection date so that you can select any open appointment slot when you have found your new home.

Get Approved

Once we receive your completed application, our staff members will verify income levels and let you know when you have been approved for the program. If necessary, we may request more information. This process usually can take 1 – 2 days to complete.

Schedule Your Inspection

Once you have been approved, please schedule a home inspection appointment online in our scheduling app. Please mention that you have been approved for reduced rates in the notes so that your inspector will adjust the fees accordingly. Please coordinate the inspection time with the home’s occupants and your real estate agent to make sure our inspectors have complete access on the day of the inspection.

Inspection Day

Our inspectors will conduct the home inspection on the date and time you have selected. If possible, it’s a good idea to attend the inspection so that you can find out more about the home onsite. Please let your inspector know of any particular concerns you might have with the home at the start of the inspection. At the end of the inspection, your inspector will do a summary of the significant issues concerning the home and will be available for additional questions.

The inspection reports are delivered electronically on the same day as the inspection. Payment for the inspection services is due prior to the end of the inspection. Inspectors can accept cash, check or credit cards.

*** All applications must be received and processed prior to scheduling an appointment. No exceptions will be allowed. ***

Apply for Scholarship!

Nonprofit Home Inspections is pleased to be able to offer free inspection services to other nonprofit organizations in our community that serve low income populations. We frequently partner with other organizations including Habitat for Humanity, domestic violence shelters, low-income housing organizations and others working to help Oregon and Washington’s low income populations.

I rent my home. Is this program only for home buyers?

No. You can use our services to help find health and safety issues relating to your current housing. We can conduct full home inspections and full mold inspections on your current home whether you own it or not. This can be useful in documenting defects in a home that are not being addressed by a landlord. In order to qualify for our services, however, you must be listed on the lease or rent agreement. You cannot qualify for our program and then request an inspection of a home that is leased or rented under another person’s name.

Please note that landlords may not be required by law to fix some of the issues we will find in our inspection. Consultation with a tenants rights organization to determine landlord responsibilities is advised before scheduling an inspection.

I want to sell my home. Can you do a pre-listing inspection for a reduced rate so that I can find problems to fix before putting it on the market?

We do not do pre-listing inspections at reduced rates. This is because pre-listing inspections are designed to help a seller increase the sales price of a home by addressing issues rather than to provide a healthy home for a low or moderate income person. In addition, the home likely has equity that can be used to pay for services like a pre-listing inspection.

Is there a limit on how many homes I can have inspected at a reduced rate?

We offer each qualified household the option of using our home inspection services for one visit per year at 50% off. This price reduction covers all services requested for a home at the same time (i.e. home inspection, radon testing, sewer scope, etc.) Additional home inspection services requested for other homes or at a different time for the same house are available at 25% off our listed prices once you have qualified for our program.

What documentation do you need to process my application?

The easiest way to qualify for our program is to provide documentation of your participation in another program designed to provide housing assistance for low and moderate income families. If you are involved in a home buying program like Habitat for Humanity, Proud Ground, Native American Youth & Family Center (NAYA), Hacienda, African American Alliance for Home Ownership (AAAH), Asian & Pacific Islander Community Improvement Association (APICIA), or similar organization, please upload documentation confirming your participation. Any similar program must have similar income guidelines and be geared towards increasing home ownership opportunities for low and moderate income families.

If you are not participating in a similar home ownership program, you can upload a copy of your most recent tax returns and a recent pay stub. We will then review your submitted information based on federal guidelines to see if you would qualify for our reduced fee services.

I qualify for your services. Can I request an inspection for someone else's home?

No. Individuals requesting our services must be the ones who are personally purchasing the home for their own use or who are listed on the lease / rental agreement. You must be listed as the buyer on the purchasing documents or lease agreement. You cannot qualify for our services and then request the inspection for someone else that is buying or renting a home.