Critical Education

ASHI’s new REALTOR Education Task Force is committed to spreading a better understanding of what home inspectors do. 

Formed under current ASHI National President Lisa Alajajian Giroux and spearheaded by ASHI National Treasurer Roger Herdt alongside ASHI Board Members James Jones III and Ray Mayo, the task force is off to a strong start with a popular educational offering for real estate agents. 

Called Understanding the ASHI SOP for Real Estate Professionals, this critical new education is helping real estate agents understand the importance of ASHI inspectors. “This is your opportunity to educate REALTORS® on what the Standards are and what they require you to report and why,” Herdt said. 

The free, two-hour educational course is self-guided, with CE credits in the works. “The course breaks down the ASHI SOP in a way that makes it easy for real estate professionals to understand what is included in home inspections, and it gives them the essential knowledge to talk to clients about what to expect,” said Edwin Barrera, ASHI’s director of education and curriculum development.  

Herdt said the session is impressive in getting the message out as to what a home inspection does and does not do. “In the process, it also showcases your professionalism and what being ASHI-certified means.”

The demand for this education became clear several years ago, as Herdt recalls it. “Mark Goodman was president of ASHI at the time and was approached by a member of the California Association of REALTORS, who wanted ASHI to come up with something to explain to REALTORS who we were and what we do.” A

t the same time, Herdt was approached by the South Carolina Association of REALTORS to work on a similar task force with its executive director and the president of a local real estate agent association. Finally, in conversations with Goodman and Barrera, the education team began to develop its own REALTOR education module. 

“They get an opportunity to see what we do and why we do it. And through the whole thing it is saying, ‘Your ASHI inspector does this,’ and ‘ASHI inspectors will be happy to work with you,’ so the name ASHI comes up over and over again,” Herdt said, pointing to how the course helps celebrate the level of quality an ASHI inspector provides compared to other inspectors.

It also gives home inspectors a chance to talk to their local real estate agents and develop a partnership where inspectors and agents are helping one another, Herdt said. “

In the past a lot of REALTORS have seen home inspectors as someone who’s out to screw their deal, and this is changing that attitude,” he said. “By the same token, I hear some home inspectors who say, REALTORS just don’t understand what we do. They hate us all.’ This will help home inspectors learn, too.” 

Herdt has been attending meetings, networking, and encouraging his peers to take their business cards alongside the ASHI-designed REALTOR cards with QR codes so real estate agents can learn more about the free course. Before one recent lunch-and-learn with 150 real estate agents, Herdt gave cards to each REALTOR. “I explained to them that if they used that QR code, it would tell them what the program does and how to sign up.” Several of the attendees told him afterward that they thought the course was a great idea. Turns out that quick exchange was great for business, too. “That first week I got inspections ordered from 10 REALTORS who had never used me before,” he said. “I’ve had other people in our chapter report to me that they’re getting similar results. This is a real opportunity and a real benefit to our membership.” 

ASHI is developing other courses for real estate agents as well, Barrera said, with the next course highlighting some of the common defects home inspectors find during inspections. “The goal of this course is to educate real estate professionals on common issues identified during home inspections, so they can better help their clients understand and address potential defects noted in inspection reports. This course will also help ensure real estate professionals can communicate with their clients about typical findings and are not caught off-guard when they receive their home inspection report,” he said. “Really, a knowledgeable real estate professional is an asset, and this course will help them get there.” 

Future courses may focus on relationship building and other areas of need, as to be determined by real estate agents and the task force. 

“This program only works if it is implemented locally,” Herdt said. “We really need inspectors who are working in the trenches to talk to local REALTORS.” 

Any ASHI inspector is invited to join the REALTOR Education Task Force, especially as the group is looking to involve more people nationwide. Anyone interested is encouraged to send an email to Herdt at herdtworks@msn.com or Susan Lane at susanl@ashi.org.