Ohio to Texas: home inspector license reciprocity

1. 1Other. Qualifying education for the Professional Inspector license on the substitute experience pathway, taken from a TREC-approved qualifying education provider: 40 hours Property and Building Inspection Module I, 40 hours Property and Building Inspection Module II, 10 hours Business Operations and Professional Responsibility Module, 20 hours Texas Law Module, 24 hours Texas Standards of Practice Module, 20 hours Analysis of Findings and Reporting Module and the 40-hour Texas Practicum, 194 hours in total. Modules I and II can be credited to an applicant with three years of experience in a field directly related to home inspection, and an applicant who has already passed the national portion of the examination does not need Modules I and II, Business Operations and Professional Responsibility or Analysis of Findings and Reporting. On the traditional pathway, which assumes a Texas Real Estate Inspector license and 175 supervised inspections, the education requirement is 134 hours..
2. 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam (if applicable). National portion of the Texas inspector examination, which is the National Home Inspector Examination that TREC has adopted and which is delivered in Texas through Pearson VUE. It is not required of an applicant who has previously passed the national portion. Where the two portions are taken separately, the national portion must be taken first. After three consecutive failures an applicant must complete additional qualifying education before retaking..
3. 3Law / code exam. Pass a law, rules, or code exam. Texas state portion of the inspector examination, covering the subject areas required by Chapter 1102 of the Occupations Code and the Texas Standards of Practice. A Professional Inspector applicant must score at least 75 percent; a Real Estate Inspector applicant must score at least 70 percent. This portion is not waived for an out-of-state inspector on any published route. An applicant becomes eligible for it only after TREC has evidence of the Texas Law Module, the Texas Standards of Practice Module and the Texas Practicum where those are required. Results are valid for one year from the passing date, and three consecutive failures trigger additional qualifying education before a retake..
4. 4Exam fee. Pay the exam fee. Examination fees are paid to the exam provider rather than to TREC. TREC's fee schedule lists the inspector exam fee only as payable to the exam provider and states no amount, so check the current price when you register or ask TREC..
5. 5Application fee. Pay the application fee ($120). Professional Inspector original application fee of $120, filed through TREC's online licensing portal. Reinstating a Professional Inspector license after more than two years is also $120. Amounts are from TREC's fee schedule effective December 15, 2025..
6. 6License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($10). Real Estate Inspection Recovery Fee of $10, which TREC's fee schedule marks as paid only after the examination is passed. It funds the Real Estate Inspection Recovery Fund that compensates consumers harmed by a licensed inspector. There is no separate license issuance fee. Renewal every two years is $60 plus a $3 Texas Online fee..
7. 7Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($100,000). Proof of financial responsibility giving coverage for violations of Chapter 1102, Subchapter G at $100,000 per occurrence, filed before the license is issued and again at every renewal. TREC's Certificate of Insurance form (REI_COI-2), signed by the insurance agent, is the usual way to show it, and TREC also publishes a Proof of Financial Responsibility form (REI-PFR-1). Texas Occupations Code Section 1102.1141 frames this as financial responsibility rather than insurance alone: a professional liability (errors and omissions) policy with a minimum limit of $100,000 per occurrence and an annual aggregate of at least $100,000, or a bond or other security accepted by the Commission. Ask TREC before relying on anything other than an errors-and-omissions policy. An inspector who meets every other renewal requirement but cannot show coverage receives an inactive license and may not perform inspections..
8. 8Background check. Complete a background check. Fingerprints must be on file with the Texas Department of Public Safety, which TREC uses for a state and federal criminal history check, and applicants answer TREC's honesty, trustworthiness and integrity questions. TREC's fee schedule lists a fingerprint fee of $38.25 paid to IDEMIA where the applicant has not previously been fingerprinted for TREC. An applicant unsure whether a criminal history or other fitness issue will bar them can pay for a Fitness Determination before applying, which the same schedule lists at $50 plus a $2 Texas Online fee..
9. 9Continuing education. Complete continuing education. Every TREC inspector license renews on a two-year cycle, and renewal takes 32 hours of inspector continuing education, including the 8-hour Inspector Legal and Ethics and SOP Review course, together with current proof of financial responsibility..

Published fees on this path total $130, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.