ASHI Reporter Articles

What Should We Be Saying About Open-loop Hot Water Heating Systems?

Do you ever get those anxiety dreams at night? The ones where the train is coming for you and the lights are bearing down, but you can’t get off the […]

Basic Marketing Concepts, Part 2

This month, we continue sharing some basic marketing concepts. If these concepts are new to you, it’s well worth your time to read more about them as they’re essential for […]

Home Inspection Standard Member Comment Announcement

The Standards Committee is accepting comments about a proposed change to the ASHI Standard of Practice for Home Inspections (SoP). The committee encourages members to read this proposed SoP change […]

Inspecting Your Pre-inspection Agreement

Home inspectors who have attended one of my seminars know that having a strong, tight, well-crafted Pre-Inspection Agreement is one of the six key elements of a professional liability complete […]

Mike Holmes Inspections

“Health Sells”: Serve Your Clients in a New Way by Offering the Healthy Home Checkup

You might have noticed that some articles in the Reporter these past few months have fallen under a “health” theme. Although many of these articles have described ways to improve or maintain inspectors’ health, there’s another key aspect to health that home inspectors can tap into to help your clients and your bottom line: Consider offering the Healthy Home CheckupTM by Healthy Housing Solutions, Inc.® as an additional service.

Barometric Damper (Draft Regulator) on Oil-fired Appliances

Oil-burning furnaces and boilers have a different venting system than gas appliances. Oil burners are forced draft and operate at higher temperatures than gas burners. Oil burners draw in combustion air through a fan, and the air mixes with oil droplets under pressure. There is some excess air, but like a gas furnace, not enough to ensure good draft. We need to add draft air.

Basic Marketing Concepts

As you think about a marketing strategy for your home inspection business, you should understand some fundamental terms and concepts. In this article, we’ll start with differentiating marketing and sales, and then we’ll discuss features versus benefits.

Are Your Recommendations Based on Accurate Information?

In the fall and winter of 2011, I inspected a 10- to 12-year-old townhouse complex to assess chronic ice damming and moisture intrusion concerns.