Becoming A Home Inspector With Your Very Own Home Inspector Bond

The real estate market within Canada is booming and thousands of consumers are hoping to take advantage of the situation. Whether you wish to sell or buy, you need to go work closely with a home inspector. This professional is responsible for inspecting the home and evaluating its overall value. Their responsibilities are truly diverse and incredibly daunting. The Canadian government is well aware of the fact that plenty can go wrong and they’ve attempted to protect consumers, by enforcing the requirement of a home inspector bond. Below, you’ll learn about this bond and how it can help consumers throughout the country.

What Is A Home Inspector?

A home inspector is a licensed professional that inspects new builds to see if they are compliant with the provincial building codes. This professional must be familiar with the general Canadian building codes, electrical systems, and testing equipment. Not only must home inspectors be licensed, but also a reputable surety company must also bond them.

Real Estate companies, buyers, and other individuals will seek to hire a home inspector to inspect homes of interest. This inspection will protect the individual from potential financial loss linked to unlisted defects, out of code compliance, and poor building structure. These things may not be visible to these individuals, but the inspector will be able to find any undisclosed problem during their inspection.

Home Inspector Bond Application

Most home inspector bond applications are generally very basic and only consist of 3-4 steps. You must provide accurate information, in order for application to be process. Some information required includes:

• Company name
• Physical address of company and applicant
• Company phone number (fax number and website URL, if you have one)
• Contact name, phone number, and email URL
• Number of years in business
• Approximate annual revenue
• Nature of business
• Number of partner

You will also be asked, whether or not you have declared bankruptcy and any pending lawsuits. Always be honest, when answering these questions, because the surety company will find out, if you are being deceptive.

Licensing Requirements

As someone, who wishes to acquire their home inspector license, you’ll need to complete several steps ahead of time. Although these steps will differ depending on where you’re located within Canada, the majority of wannabe home inspectors will need to acquire at least $10,000 worth of security. Although this can be obtained in the form of a Cash Security Agreement, it is much easier to acquire the Inspector Surety Bond, which you can apply at constructionBond.ca … Also, you will be required to pay a specific fee depending on the number of employees your business has.

Although the specifics truly depend, the licensing fee for Alberta will be listed below for your consideration.

• 3 or less employees – $500
• More than 3, but less than 10 – $700
• 10 or more employees – $900

Within Alberta, your license will remain valid for 24 months. Around the renewal date, you will receive a notification making you aware of the situation, so you can renew, before it is too late. Remember to keep your bond active, so you can renew without any further difficulties. Also, you will need to have Errors and Omissions Insurance and it needs to cover at least $1,000,000 per claim.

Understanding The Costs

As mentioned above, you will most likely be required to obtain a Home Inspector Bond in the value of $10,000. However, you need to remember that you’ll only be required to pay a percentage of the bond. The surety company will set the percentage of the amount required. Generally, this will depend on a handful of factors, including the duration of the bond, your location and your personal credit score. Some sureties will also look at the history of your business. Maintaining a good reputation and excellent credit score is pertinent for keeping your premiums low.

However, you should remember that a lot of surety companies would be more than willing to offer you bonds, even if you have bad credit. Just obtain quotes, so you can acquire the most generous premium possible.

Maintaining Your Bond

Before going any further, you should remember than the Canadian government will maintain the ability to revoke or suspend your bond at any point in time. Of course, they will only take this type of action, if you’ve been caught abusing your authority. This is truly the entire purpose behind the bond. It helps to guarantee that home inspectors remain responsible and trustworthy, so their clients can maintain their reassurance. In order to maintain the validity of your bond, you need to abide by the laws that govern home inspectors, while trying to always satisfy your client. If you fail to do so, you may have a claim filed against the bond and this could lead to enormous complications and losses.

Once you’re ready to get started, you will want to begin filing out applications and acquiring quotes.

Other types of license bonds that we offer:

• Alcohol Bond – Protects the government in the event tax and fees are not paid by businesses.
• Auctioneer Bond – Protects the customer against misrepresented auctioned items.
• Bailiff Bond – Required by a bailiff before employment begins and protects victims of misconduct.
• Collection Agency Bond – Guarantees ethical use of sensitive client information by agencies.
• Consumer Protection Bond – Protects clients from unauthorized use of their information.
• Direct Sellers Bond – Protects the customer that incurs damages as a result of a direct seller.
• Debt Repayment Bond – Protects customers from fraud or misconduct by debt repayment agencies
• Gas Bond – Required by gas installers or gas equipment installers before beginning work.
• Freight Broker Bond – Required by freight brokers before they can accept any orders.
• Insurance Adjuster Bond – Required by independent insurance adjusters before working.
• Immigration License Bond – Required by immigration consultants before beginning work.
• Livestock Dealer Bond – Required by dealers before buying, selling, and bidding on livestock.
• Mortgage Broker Bond – Ensurers that agents are compliant with provincial regulations and acts.
• Payday Lender Bond – Protects customers from fraud or wrong doings by payday lenders.
• Private Investigator Bond – Required by investigators & employees of the agency before working.
• Real Estate Broker Bond – May be required by realtors along with licensing.
• Telemarketing Bond – Protects customers from frauds and misconduct by telemarketers.
• Travel Agency Bond – Required by travel agencies before working with the public.