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The differences between building officials and home inspectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a building official and a home inspector. Additionally, a home inspector has an average salary of $51,264, which is higher than the $46,398 average annual salary of a building official.
The top three skills for a building official include community development, code compliance and plumbing. The most important skills for a home inspector are crawl spaces, pest control, and plumbing.
| Building Official | Home Inspector | |
| Yearly salary | $46,398 | $51,264 |
| Hourly rate | $22.31 | $24.65 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 4,912 | 55,491 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 45% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A building official has the authority to enforce building codes within their jurisdiction. Usually working for government agencies, a building official is in charge of conducting building inspections to determine if the construction complies with the safety standards and regulations. They may also approve or deny permit applications, review requirements, and verify documents. Moreover, a building official also has managerial office duties such as supervising and leading staff to reach goals, setting daily objectives and guidelines, establishing timelines, delegating responsibilities among teams, and implementing policies and regulations.
A home inspector is primarily in charge of performing inspections and assessments to identify problem areas and potential risks. Although the extent of their responsibilities depends on their line of work or company of employment, it usually includes studying and assessing the structural elements of houses such as its floors and ceilings, testing the alarm or fire detecting equipment, inspecting drainage and pipe systems, and checking appliances should there be any. Moreover, a home inspector produces detailed reports along with recommendations to help the clients in making decisions.
Building officials and home inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Building Official | Home Inspector | |
| Average salary | $46,398 | $51,264 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $89,000 | Between $32,000 And $82,000 |
| Highest paying City | Riverside, CA | - |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | - |
| Best paying company | University of California | - |
| Best paying industry | Government | - |
There are a few differences between a building official and a home inspector in terms of educational background:
| Building Official | Home Inspector | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 45% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | San Diego State University | San Diego State University |
Here are the differences between building officials' and home inspectors' demographics:
| Building Official | Home Inspector | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.2% Female, 9.8% | Male, 85.7% Female, 14.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.1% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 3.4% White, 69.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 8.1% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 3.4% White, 69.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |