Thursday, June 28, 2007

Florida Home Inspector Licensing Law


Quick quiz for you. What industry licensing, experience, and educational requirements does Florida Law require Home Inspectors to have. It may surprise you to learn that the answer is ZERO. While Realtors® and other professionals have tried for years to get the State to recognize the need for for such regulations, it is only now that something is being done about it.

Governor Charlie Crist just signed a bill (SB2234) into law that addresses this need. What this law does, is create the groundwork for a program to require licensing of home inspectors, mold assessors and remediators in Florida. Finally gaining enough support to materialize, the Legislature hopes this will "...ensure that consumers of home inspection services can rely on the competence of home inspectors..."

The good news is that this new law will require 120 hours of pre-license education and 14 hours of continuing education every two years. The bad news? The law doesn't go into effect for 3 more years (July 1, 2010). Over the next three years the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) will create a program for certification, establish licensing fees and draft rules.

1 comment:

Jeremy Lowe said...

Sadly, this is not the only industry. Pool cleaners can function with just a Business license which leaves them free to make repairs that only licensed contractors should make. The whole thing here in FL is a mess.