Maine to North Carolina: home inspector license reciprocity

1. 1Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. The Board's own written examination. It is delivered online by Questionmark on behalf of the Office of State Fire Marshal and can be taken on a computer anywhere with a secure internet connection, including at home, once the application is approved. One paper covers both sides of the subject: the Board's administrative rules and N.C.G.S. 143, Article 9F, and the inspection of building structures and their components and of electrical, mechanical and plumbing systems and appliances. A score of 70% passes. The examination is offered at least twice a year and may be taken only once every 90 days. North Carolina requires this examination of every applicant, including one arriving with an out-of-state license, and publishes no substitute for it, so a national examination such as the National Home Inspector Examination does not take its place. The question count and time limit are released in the Candidate Information Bulletin after the application is approved rather than published in advance..
2. 2Application fee. Pay the application fee ($35). Application for a home inspector license, set by 11 NCAC 08 .1011. It is waived for active duty military, veterans and spouses. A candidate who fails the examination and applies again does not pay this fee a second time..
3. 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($80). Home inspector examination fee, set by 11 NCAC 08 .1011 and paid to Questionmark on behalf of the Office of State Fire Marshal after the application is approved. It is payable again for each retake..
4. 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($160). Issuance or renewal of the home inspector license, set by 11 NCAC 08 .1011 and due after the examination is passed. The Board does not issue the license until it has the fee. The license runs from issue to the following 30 September; late renewal costs a further $30..
5. 5Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($250,000). General liability insurance of $250,000, required of every licensee by N.C.G.S. 143-151.51(b)(1). It may be individual cover or cover under an employer's policy. The policy must cover the licensee's activities during a home inspection on the premises being inspected and must include both property damage and bodily injury cover. Every licensed inspector files a certificate of insurance with the Board each January naming the Board as certificate holder, and the license lapses if the cover is not kept continuously in force..
6. 6Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($250,000) (if applicable). Errors and omissions insurance of $250,000 is one of three ways to satisfy the second limb of N.C.G.S. 143-151.51(b). It may be individual cover or cover under an employer's policy. North Carolina does not require E&O outright: an applicant may choose it, or a surety bond, or minimum net assets instead, but one of the three must be in place alongside the general liability policy..
7. 7Surety bond. Post a surety bond ($5,000) (if applicable). A surety bond is the second of the three alternatives under N.C.G.S. 143-151.51(b)(2). The statute sets a range of not less than $5,000 and not more than $10,000 and leaves the figure to the Board; 11 NCAC 08 .1006(b) fixes it at at least $5,000. The bond must be written by a surety company authorized by the Commissioner of Insurance to do business in North Carolina..
8. 8Financial responsibility. Show financial responsibility of at least $5,000 (if applicable). Minimum net assets are the third alternative under N.C.G.S. 143-151.51(b)(2). The statute sets a range of not less than $5,000 and not more than $10,000 and leaves the exact figure to the Board, which does not publish it on its licensing pages. Ask the Board which figure it currently applies before choosing this option over a bond or E&O cover..
9. 9Background check. Complete a background check. Applicants disclose criminal history on the application and consent to a criminal history record check. Where history is disclosed, the Board requires a national criminal history records check and refers the application to its Application Evaluation Committee. A conviction of, or plea to, a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude or any felony is a ground on which the Board may refuse a license..
10. 10Other. The 200-hour pre-licensing program: at least 120 hours of classroom instruction plus at least 80 hours of field instruction with at least 10 site visits, taken with a Board-approved sponsor. An applicant whose out-of-state license is accepted as evidence of experience under 11 NCAC 08 .1005, or who qualifies on equivalent experience under .1004, does not have to take it. Where it is taken, attendance must be at least 90% of scheduled classroom hours and the final course examination must be passed at 75% or better, closed book. (if applicable).
11. 11Continuing education. Complete continuing education. 12 continuing education credit hours per license period, which runs 1 October to 30 September, as a condition of renewing an active license. An inspector newly licensed on or after 1 June is exempt for that first period. Licensees who qualified as a general contractor, architect or professional engineer without completing the pre-licensing program or its equivalent take 16 hours a year for their first three years instead, made up of 4 hours of a Board-approved course, 4 hours of the update course component and 8 hours of electives..

Published fees on this path total $275, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.