Home Inspector

Check a house from roof to basement before someone buys it. Short training, mostly self-employed, licensed in BC (British Columbia) and Alberta, and in Quebec from 2027.

Typical pay: $80,000a year
Time to qualify: 1 to 3 yearsafter high school
Demand: Moderate
Licence needed: Dependsneeded in Alberta and British Columbia

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Quick answers

How much does a home inspector make in Canada?

The median pay is about $80,000 a year. Across everyone in the job it runs from about $51,000 at the lower end to about $114,000 at the upper end. The source is listed under Sources at the end of this page.

How long does it take to become a home inspector in Canada?

1 to 3 years after high school, on the usual route.

What does it cost to become a home inspector?

$3,000 to $13,000 all in for tuition, fees, exams and kit. Living costs are not counted.

Do you need a licence to work as a home inspector in Canada?

It depends where you work. You need a licence, certificate or registration in Alberta and British Columbia. Elsewhere there is none to hold, though many employers still ask for training or a certificate.

What is the job outlook for a home inspector in Canada?

Moderate demand nationally, from government outlook data. Demand varies by region, so check your area.

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Home Inspector salary in Canada

What you earn and what it costs to get there.

What home inspectors make

Median

$80,000

Lower end

$51,000

Upper end

$114,000

Job Bank's national median is $38.46 an hour, about $80,000 a year at 40 hours a week, but Job Bank pools home inspectors with all construction inspectors, including municipal building inspectors on salary. Most home inspectors are self-employed and paid per inspection, so their income depends on how many inspections they book and is not measured by this survey. Alberta's 2023 wage survey gives an average of $94,001 a year for the same construction inspector group.

Starting pay in Alberta

$40.74 an hour

The average starting wage for construction inspectors in Alberta's 2023 wage survey, about $85,000 a year

That survey counts employees, many of them municipal building inspectors. Self-employed home inspectors are paid a fee for each house instead, so a first year spent building referrals from real estate agents can pay far less.

Where pay is highest

$39.00 an hour

The median in Ontario, about $81,000 a year, the highest of the provinces

Yukon's estimate is higher, at $43.18. Prince Edward Island's median is the lowest, at $32.66. Like the national figure, these pool home inspectors with building inspectors on salary.

What it costs to get there

Home inspection training course: A few thousand dollars at a college or private school
Provincial licence (BC, Alberta, and Quebec from 2027): In BC, $1,461 to apply in 2026, then $1,344 a year to renew
Errors and omissions insurance: Required in licensed provinces. BC asks for $1 million of it plus $1 million of general liability cover, paid every year
Tools: $2,000 to $5,000 for a moisture meter, thermal camera, ladders, software

Roughly, all in

$3,000 to $13,000

Tuition, fees, exams and kit. Not rent, food or travel

The low end is a short training course and a basic kit in one of the provinces that does not license inspectors, which is most of them. The high end is a longer private school course, a full kit with a thermal camera, moisture meter, ladders and reporting software, and the first year of licensing plus errors and omissions insurance in British Columbia or Alberta. The insurance is a yearly bill rather than a one time cost, so it keeps running for as long as you inspect. A vehicle is not counted because almost everyone entering this job already drives.

Roughly $3,000 to $13,000 to start. Cheap compared with a trade or degree, which is why the field is crowded and reputation matters more than the certificate.

How inspectors get paid

Self-employed
Most inspectors. You set fees, find clients and carry your own insurance.
Multi-inspector company
Salary or a share of each fee, with the company handling marketing.
Add-on services
Radon testing, thermal imaging, sewer scopes and condo document reviews are charged as extra fees.
No pension, no benefits
Unless you build them yourself.

How to become a home inspector in Canada

The exact path from high school to qualified.

The path to becoming a home inspector, step by step

Short formal training, then a long apprenticeship in reputation.

1
High school diploma
Grade 12
Grade 12. A construction background helps more than marks.
2
Learn buildings
1 to 5 years, optional but valuable
Most successful inspectors first spend years in a trade, in construction, or in a technology diploma. Buyers trust someone who has built or repaired houses.
3
Home inspection course
A few months
College certificate programs, for example at NAIT and SAIT (the Northern and Southern Alberta Institutes of Technology), or private schools. Covers structure, roofing, electrical, plumbing, heating and report writing.
4
Licence or designation
Months to 2 years
A provincial licence in BC (British Columbia) or Alberta, and in Quebec an RBQ (Régie du bâtiment du Québec) certificate, mandatory from 1 October 2027. Elsewhere, a voluntary designation such as RHI (Registered Home Inspector) through CAHPI (the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors), which needs a national exam, mentoring and a review of your reports.
5
Build the business
1 to 2 years to full time
Ride along with an experienced inspector, then market yourself to real estate agents and buyers.

High school courses that help you become a home inspector

Construction technology or shop
How houses are put together.
Physics
Moisture, heat loss, electricity and structure.
English
Your written report is the product.
Business
You are running a company.

Time and money, at a glance

Years after high school: 1 to 3 to be working; longer to be trusted
Admission: Open; courses accept most applicants
Total cost to start: $3,000 to $13,000, with tools and a first licence
Paid while training?: No, unless you come from a trade

Licensed in British Columbia and Alberta, soon in Quebec

British Columbia licenses home inspectors through Consumer Protection BC (British Columbia), and Alberta licenses both inspection businesses and individual inspectors under its consumer protection rules. Both require errors and omissions insurance. Quebec's rules took effect in October 2024, and from 1 October 2027 its inspectors need an RBQ (Régie du bâtiment du Québec) certificate.

No licence in Ontario yet

Ontario passed a licensing law in 2017 but has not brought it into force, so in Ontario and most other provinces anyone can call themselves a home inspector. There, the voluntary RHI (Registered Home Inspector) designation from CAHPI (the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors) is what separates professionals from the rest.

Quebec routeIn Quebec? The route is different. 3 more cards.

The path in Quebec

Quebec now licenses home inspectors: from 1 October 2027, anyone doing pre-purchase inspections needs a certificate from the RBQ (Régie du bâtiment du Québec, the Quebec building board).

1
Finish Secondary V
Age 16 or 17
You need a DES (Secondary School Diploma) or a DEP (Diploma of Vocational Studies). Some colleges also ask that you have been out of full-time school for at least two terms.
2
AEC (Attestation of College Studies) in building inspection
About 8 months
It must follow the inspection standard BNQ 3009-500 (set by the Bureau de normalisation du Québec). At Cégep Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu it is 630 hours, full time, in French.
3
Get insurance
Before you apply
General liability and errors and omissions insurance from an insurer authorized in Quebec: $1,000,000 for a class 1 certificate, $2,000,000 for class 2.
4
Apply for the RBQ certificate
Weeks
Class 1 covers buildings with 1 to 6 units. Class 2 covers any residential building and needs a second AEC on large buildings. A class 1 certificate costs $942.69 in 2026.
5
Inspect to the standard
Ongoing
Every inspection must follow BNQ 3009-500. The RBQ also sets continuing education for certificate holders, and the public can look you up in its register.

Quebec colleges with an approved program

From the RBQ (Quebec building board) list of programs that meet the regulation. No English program is listed.

Cégep Beauce-Appalaches
Building inspection, plus the only listed AEC (Attestation of College Studies) for large buildings, needed for class 2. Also offers recognition of prior learning.
Cégep de Chicoutimi
Residential building inspection. Also offers recognition of prior learning for experienced inspectors.
Cégep de Lanaudière and Cégep Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu
Cégep du Vieux Montréal, Institut Grasset and Collège C.E.I. (a private college)

Already inspecting, or licensed elsewhere?

Until 2 August 2027, inspectors already working without the approved AEC (Attestation of College Studies) can still get a certificate by passing refresher training and showing experience: 3 years in the last 5 for class 1, or 5 years in the last 8 for class 2, backed by proof of insurance. Inspectors accredited in another province must pass an RBQ (Quebec building board) exam on Quebec rules.

What helps you get ahead as a home inspector

Things you don't need, but that help.

Services you can add

Thermal imaging
An infrared camera finds missing insulation and hidden moisture. Charged as an add-on.
Radon testing
Health Canada recommends testing every home. A certified radon measurement provider can add a recurring service.
Sewer scope and mould sampling
Extra equipment, extra fee.
Commercial and condo reserve fund work
Bigger jobs for inspectors with engineering or trade credentials.

Nice-to-haves

A trade ticket
Electricians and plumbers who become inspectors are rare and trusted.
Comfort on ladders and in crawlspaces
Every inspection has both.
Photography and report software
Clear photos and a same-day report are what agents remember.
Sales skills
Your clients come from agents and word of mouth. Introverts can do this job, but they have to work at marketing.

What being a home inspector is really like

Day to day, pros and cons, where you'd work.

What a home inspector does day to day

A 9am inspection: walk the roof or check it from a ladder, then the exterior, attic, every room, the electrical panel, plumbing, furnace and the crawlspace or basement, taking photos the whole time. Two to three hours, with the buyer following you and asking questions. A quick lunch in the truck, then a 1pm condo inspection. Evening: write both reports and send them, answer a nervous buyer's phone call, and confirm tomorrow's bookings.

The honest pros and cons of being a home inspector

The good

Fast, cheap entry compared with a trade or degree
Be your own boss and set your own schedule
Every house is a puzzle, and you help people make a huge decision
Add-on services bring in extra fees

The hard parts

Income rises and falls with the housing market
No pension, benefits or paid vacation when self-employed
Crowded field in unregulated provinces; reputation takes years
Legal exposure if you miss a serious defect

Work life

Typical hours: Long days in spring and summer, slow in winter
Remote work: Report writing at home; inspections on site
Physical demand: Moderate: roofs, attics, crawlspaces
Unionized: No

Similar paths

Things nobody tells you about being a home inspector

Things people don't tell you.

BC licensed inspectors first

In March 2009, British Columbia became the first place in Canada to regulate home inspectors. A new BC (British Columbia) licence now costs $1,461, and keeping it costs $1,344 a year. Most provinces still have no licence at all.

No pay for the verdict

CAHPI (the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors) bans its members from working for a fee that depends on what they find or on the house selling. They also may not take money for recommending a contractor.

Canada has a national standard

CSA (Canadian Standards Association) A770 is the Canadian standard for home inspections, and CAHPI (the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors) requires members to follow either it or the association's own standards of practice. Ask any inspector which one they use.

How a home inspector compares

Every list is built from the same numbers shown above, so you can see where this career sits next to the others.

More skilled trades careers in Canada

Construction first, then the rest of the field. See every career in skilled trades.

Where these numbers come from

Last checked October 2026. Pay figures are typical full-time annual amounts in Canadian dollars, based on Government of Canada Job Bank wage data and published salary grids. They vary by province, employer and experience. Tuition is for domestic students. How every figure on this site is sourced and checked.