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The differences between home inspectors and building 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 home inspector and a building inspector. Additionally, a building inspector has an average salary of $51,781, which is higher than the $51,264 average annual salary of a home inspector.
The top three skills for a home inspector include crawl spaces, pest control and plumbing. The most important skills for a building inspector are plumbing, customer service, and building construction.
| Home Inspector | Building Inspector | |
| Yearly salary | $51,264 | $51,781 |
| Hourly rate | $24.65 | $24.89 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 55,491 | 20,962 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
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.
A building inspector is responsible for inspecting the safety and security of the building location, including its structural quality and construction documents. Building inspectors coordinate with landowners or institutions to verify code regulations compliance and submit work orders and permits. They also provide expense forecasting for development, identifying cost-reduction techniques by recommending trusted suppliers and third-party vendors on construction materials with the highest quality. A building inspector must have excellent communication and analytical skills, especially on negotiating contracts and processing occupation permits.
Home inspectors and building inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Home Inspector | Building Inspector | |
| Average salary | $51,264 | $51,781 |
| Salary range | Between $32,000 And $82,000 | Between $31,000 And $84,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | California |
| Best paying company | - | Icma-rc |
| Best paying industry | - | Technology |
There are a few differences between a home inspector and a building inspector in terms of educational background:
| Home Inspector | Building Inspector | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 44% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | San Diego State University | San Diego State University |
Here are the differences between home inspectors' and building inspectors' demographics:
| Home Inspector | Building Inspector | |
| Average age | 50 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 85.7% Female, 14.3% | Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1% |
| 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, 8.4% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 3.4% White, 68.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |