price of inspection

[Doug Diller]

So here is a question I've thought about for some time but have no good answer.  Most trades (electricians, plumbers etc...) charge per hour (unless it is a really big job).  So why don't we charge per hour.  I mean a house that is 2000 sq feet could be completely different then another 2000 sq foot house.  One might take 2.5 hours and nother might take 4 hours.  Anybody have any good reasoning why we don't just charge "x" per hour?

[Bruce Ramsey]

Makes more sense to charge by selling price.  Say $250 minimum or .01 percent of selling price once more than base of $250.  That way as house prices go up, we get an automatic raise.

I charge by age and square footage.  Old homes take longer to inspect and longer to report.  Therefore I charge more.  $2 a year for every over 20 years old.  A 30 yr old house gets a $60 surcharge over the square foot price. 

If you are charging by the hour, does that include report generation time?  It may have to do with the idea of a professional service.  Your doctor charges by procedures performed, not by the hour.  If you need septic, radon, outbuildings, well, lead paint, etc services then we charge more.

[Doug Diller]

Good points.  I'm charging based on a combination of age and square foot.  Haven't gotten it down to a science yet.  About professional services.  My doctor charges by appointment but my attorney charges by the hour.   Hmmmm.   Thought provoking at the least. 

Buy the way.  I've never understood that idea of realtors charging based on a selling price.  My thought is that it most likely takes just as long to sell a $200K house as it does to sell a $300K house.

[Dominic Maricic]

The problem with hourly is that clients want to know how much the inspection will cost before you get there. Selling yourself as hourly gives an impression that you could be taking your time to bring in more money (which people do think of attorneys). You should definitely figure out how much you want to make per hour and just make sure what you quote is above that when you estimate your time for the inspection and report. But sell it as a size of house and services charge.

[David A. Andersen]

I'm sure glad you don't charge us by the amount of time you spend with us on our reports and websites!

Yes, very sound advice!

When all else fails you should determine your fee based on trying to determine the amount of time that you will be spending on the job. Eventually, you will find what it costs per square foot, per inspection service, per structural age etc.

It doesn't matter what everybody else charges. You must know your overhead, your individual inspection expenses, and what you expect in profit margin. If you don't consider this first, when April 15th rolls around, you'll be in the poor house!

Then you must know what the market will bear.

There are many inspectors out there that cannot charge what they are worth because of market value of a home inspection.

New inspectors market by low pricing.
Experienced inspectors can sell their services regardless of market price.

[Dominic Maricic]

I'm sure glad you don't charge us by the amount of time you spend with us on our reports and websites!

LOL. You guys would be broke!