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What is a housing inspector and how to become one
A housing inspector conducts inspections on residential properties to ensure that they are compliant with all regulations. Their assessment involves checking for structural defects, malfunctioning systems, or damages that could compromise residents or workers. Their job involves inspecting the interior and exterior of the home from top to bottom, which can take anywhere from a few hours to several days.
The specific duties of a housing inspector include interviewing homeowners, going over construction documents, documenting their inspection through photos and notes, and conducting tests. They are also responsible for communicating with clients, real estate professionals, and lenders about their findings. They may also be responsible for arranging repairs or improvements needed for the home.
Many housing inspectors have bachelor's degrees, but it is possible to attain this role with a high school diploma or GED. Anyone who wants to pursue this job must have adequate knowledge about construction, basic home engineering, architecture, and safety regulations. Moreover, they must be detail-oriented, organized, and skilled with people to be successful in this job. In terms of compensation, the average yearly salary for this job is around $57,000.
Avg. Salary $47,599
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth Rate -4%
Growth Rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.90%
Asian 3.42%
Black or African American 8.37%
Hispanic or Latino 13.09%
Unknown 5.75%
White 68.48%
Genderfemale 36.78%
male 63.22%
Age - 52American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 52Stress level is high
7.1 - high
Complexity Level is challenging
7 - challenging
Work Life balance is poor
6.4 - fair
Housing Inspector career paths
Key steps to become a housing inspector
Explore housing inspector education requirements
Start to develop specific housing inspector skills
Skills 
Percentages Quality Standards 10.86% Safety Issues 7.76% Plumbing 6.82% Inspection Reports 6.62% Natural Disasters 6.08% Complete relevant housing inspector training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New housing inspectors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a housing inspector based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real housing inspector resumes.Research housing inspector duties and responsibilities
- Perform inspections on subsidize units to ensure each are in accordance with city code enforcement, HUD and CMHA's regulations.
- Certify in property maintenance, residential building, residential mechanical, electrical, and plumbing
- Repair and maintain HVAC systems.
- Inspect home construction to include proper placement of walls, fixtures and HVAC.
Prepare your housing inspector resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your housing inspector resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a housing inspector resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Housing Inspector Resume templates
Build a professional Housing Inspector resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Housing Inspector resume.
Apply for housing inspector jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a housing inspector job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How Did You Land Your First Housing Inspector Job
Are you a Housing Inspector?
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Average housing inspector salary
The average Housing Inspector salary in the United States is $47,599 per year or $23 per hour. Housing inspector salaries range between $29,000 and $76,000 per year.
What Am I Worth?
How do housing inspectors rate their job?
Housing Inspector reviews
Being a home inspector means at some point, an individual involved with the sell of the property, will try to influence the outcome.
I recommend this job as one of the best in America! You can often schedule around things in your life, and create an awesome Work/Life balance. One of the things not mentioned in the review above is the windshield time. Some days I spend more time behind the wheel of my car than I do doing the work. So you have to love travel/driving. You also need to be able to communicate in writing your findings in a way that can be understood by anyone reading your reports. So about a 10th grade reading/writing level is what I expect from my subordinates. Knowledge comes with training, time and experience. Most companies I have had an opportunity to evaluate do a poor job of training their field inspectors.
The most difficult part of the job if finding the time to write out coherent reports in a timely manner. I try to get mine completed in less than 2 weeks from the visit. But some visits may have reports that can take 4-6 hours to complete accurately. I work with large and small employers and everything in between. Even after decades of working I sometimes run into things I have never seen before, so I often find myself researching and reaching out to colleagues for insight. ( for instance, I was once set to do a Worker's Comp evaluation on employees working on a monkey farm. So a lot of research on live stock and specific hazards that go along with working with that specific type of animal.) It has never gotten old or boring, that's for sure.
Updated January 8, 2025
