Engaging the Next Generation of Home Inspectors: Opportunity, Urgency, and a Path Forward

The home inspection industry has a demographic challenge that deserves an honest conversation. The average inspector today is between 53 and 57 years old. Approximately 80% of all active inspectors are over 40, and fewer than 5% are under 30. For an industry built on experience and expertise, this might seem like a badge of honor. But it also signals something urgent: a wave of retirements is coming, and the profession needs to be intentional about who is coming up behind.

That was the central message of a recent ASHI webinar titled Engaging the Next Generation, featuring Chase Kerr of Morrison Plus Property Inspections in Boise, Idaho, a first-year inspector who opened his business at 27 years old, completed 230 inspections in his first 12 months, and was named Rookie of the Year within his franchise network.

Why the Age Gap Matters

Kerr made a point that resonates: if 80% of your competition is in their 40s and 50s, and you're in your 20s or 30s with decades of runway ahead, the math works in your favor,  provided you build smart from the start. The next five to 10 years will bring significant industry consolidation as solo inspectors retire without succession plans, leaving market share available to those who are ready.

This isn't just an individual opportunity. It's an organizational one. Associations like ASHI depend on active, engaged members to set standards, advocate at the regulatory level, and shape the profession's future. If the pipeline of younger professionals isn't cultivated now, the organizations that give the inspection industry its credibility will face their own succession problem.

As ASHI's current president noted during the webinar: "You are our future. We need to bring young professionals in and show them what we have to give."

The Technology Gap Is Real, and Widening

Kerr identified a second, related trend: a growing technology gap between younger and more established inspectors. AI-powered report writing tools, CRM platforms, and social media marketing aren't just productivity extras anymore; they're becoming competitive differentiators. Inspectors who effectively adopt these tools can handle more volume, communicate more professionally, and build client relationships more easily than was possible just a few years ago.

This doesn't mean experience doesn't matter; it absolutely does. But the most effective path forward, as Kerr described it, is a blend: new technology combined with the proven, standardized practices that experienced inspectors have developed over the course of their careers. Neither side of that equation works as well without the other.

Early Career Lessons from a First-Year Inspector

Kerr shared four principles that have driven his early success. First, he reframed how he describes himself: instead of saying "I'm a home inspector," he says "I own a property inspection company." It's a small shift with a meaningful psychological impact: it broadens the role’s mental scope and changes how he presents himself to realtors and clients.

Second, he emphasized the importance of building genuine relationships with real estate agents rather than transactional ones. In his experience, top-producing agents don't let their buyers go searching for an inspector on Google. They refer from a short list of people they know and trust. Building that trust early, even as a new inspector, comes down to clear communication and consistent follow-through.

Third, make yourself replicable. If every process exists only in your head, you can't scale. Documenting how you do things, from how you engage with clients to how you handle billing, is what allows you to eventually bring on team members without losing quality.

Fourth, find a mentor. ASHI has a formal mentorship program, but Kerr was candid that it needs more participation, both mentors and mentees. If you're an experienced inspector willing to share knowledge, your involvement could make a real difference for someone building their career.

The Compound Math of Two More Inspections a Week

Kerr offered a simple but striking calculation. If the average inspection fee is $500 and an inspector adds just two more inspections per week, that's 104 additional inspections per year, roughly $52,000 in additional revenue. For an inspector employed by a firm at a 30% commission rate, that's still $15,000 in additional annual income. The question worth asking is: what would it take to get there? For most, the answer isn't more hours, it's better operations, smarter scheduling, or more targeted relationship-building.

This kind of thinking, identifying what breaks first, where time is lost, where business slips away, is what separates inspectors who plateau from those who keep growing.

Getting Involved with ASHI's Young Professionals Network

If you're a newer or younger inspector, or if you know someone who is, the Young Professionals Network within ASHI is the right place to connect. The goal is to give the next generation a formal voice in the organization, foster collaboration among peers, and build a clear path into ASHI leadership.