Taking Risks

Amy Hall is not a sit-behind-a-desk kind of person. A few years ago, in her mid-40s, she was looking for a chance to do something new and wanted a challenge. She also wanted a career where the harder she worked, the more money she could make. 

After nearly 20 years in law enforcement, Hall had started to feel stagnant. “I didn’t feel like I was living up to my potential,” she said. She began to look into other opportunities—searching for an industry that would allow her more variety and flexibility. She considered home inspection. “I landed on the ASHI website and found they were offering a class in Georgia.” 

Warm Welcome

Hall said she was fortunate to be trained by now-ASHI President Scott Johnson as part of the ASHI School in Georgia. “He let me ride along with him several times on inspections, and it turned out he was also a national instructor for the company that he works for, which is the company I work for now. So he helped recruit me.” 

That company, BPG Inspections, is one of the largest multi-inspector firms in the US.  Hall worked as a full-time home inspector for two years, and in her first year completed more than 250 inspections—becoming ASHI certified soon after that. Today, she completes home inspections part-time on weekends while policing full-time in the Atlanta metro area—where she works as a police detective and was recently voted officer of the year. She said the opportunity to be able to work in both fields continues to be rewarding. 

“This is a great balance for me,” she said, noting that she can pick up more home inspections when she wants to make a bit more money but doesn’t have to pick up as much if it’s been a tough week at the police department, for example. 

Typically, Hall does one home inspection a weekend now. “I have the stability of my full-time job and I know about how much money I’m going to make every two weeks, but I have the flexibility to still make extra money if I want,” she said. “And I love home inspections. I love everything about houses. I always have since I was a little kid. I don’t know why. None of my family was in construction. It was just my thing.”

Hall was surprised early on at how accepted she felt in her new role. “I didn’t think I would be welcomed into this industry because I’m a female and because I lack construction experience, you know? But I also feel like I’ve put in the work, I take the classes, I go on the ride-alongs, and I try to be the best home inspector I can be.” 

The key, she said, is to never think you know it all. “And I can say my supervisor at my company, Chuck Turner, and Scott Johnson, too, they’re so humble and they know so much about the industry. They love to teach, and they don’t ever make you feel inferior or like you don’t belong. They build you up and encourage you to do more. I’ve been very fortunate to have people like them in my home inspection career.”

Becoming an Expert

In a short matter of time Hall has become an expert in many ways. She was even asked to be a subject matter expert for EBPHI, which administers the National Home Inspector Exam (NHIE), helping them to formulate some of the test questions.

She has studied and learned the key elements of a home inspection, the major home systems, and she’s also conquered her fear of steep pitch roofs and learned to use a drone for multi-story inspection. “When I first started doing this, I was scared to get on a roof. I reached a turning point where it was, ‘Either you’re going to do this or you’re not. How are you going to be a home inspector if you’re afraid to get on any roof?’” 

BPG provided great training, she said. “I was paired with a younger inspector, and he and I got along famously. He set his ladder up next to mine. I walked up my ladder; he walked up his, and I mimicked his hand and foot placement, how he got off and on the ladder—all these things. We did it over and over, and he was so patient.” 

These days, Hall loves any chance she gets to be on a roof. “I’m pretty good at gauging a roof’s age just by walking on it and looking at it.”

Of course, she’s no stranger to taking on challenges. “If I find that I’m afraid to do something, sometimes I’ll make myself do it,” she said. “Getting into law enforcement was scary. When I went through taser training, I had to be tased to be able to carry my taser. I had to be sprayed with pepper spray to be able to carry that myself. It’s scary stuff. Over the years, I’ve gained more and more confidence. I’ve become a law enforcement instructor. I’m a women’s self-defense instructor. I understand the fear, and it’s important to me to make other people who might be in my shoes feel more confident.” 

Advice for Others

Now 49, Hall hopes other women won’t be deterred from venturing into the field. She remembers her own self-doubt upon first getting into this industry. “I thought I had way too much catch-up to do to ever dream of being on the same playing field as these

other inspectors. I have learned that’s not the case,” she said. “Things that are important are attention to detail and your relationships with your agents and your clients. And, quite frankly, what type of home inspection report you write.”  

Even if someone doesn’t have any construction or inspection background, she said that shouldn’t be a deterrent if someone’s considering a home inspection career. “There’s always going to be a feeling of ‘catching up,’ especially if you’re older like I am. It’s hard to change gears like that, but I would say don’t lose confidence and don’t think you can’t do it because the training is out there,” she said. “ASHI provides the training, and my company does as well, but specifically ASHI. They provide everything you need to be a successful inspector.”

Amy Hall works part-time as a home inspector at BPG Inspections and is a full-time police detective in the metro Atlanta area. She is also the 2023-24 ASHI Georgia Secretary.