History of AZ Home Inspector Licensing

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE ARIZONA BTR:

ORIGINAL OCCUPATIONS:  Prior to 2002, Arizona’s Board of Technical Registration regulated Engineers, Architects, Geologists, Assayers, Landscape Architects and Land Surveyors.  These are referred to as the "original occupations".

When Arizona decided to license Home Inspectors, several agencies such as the BTR and the Registrar of Contractors (ROC) were considered.  The BTR didn't seem to want anything to do with regulating Home Inspectors, but they got stuck with the task.  So they made the best of it by using Home Inspectors as a source of revenue.  And now, more than 5 years later, the BTR still treats Home Inspectors like nothing more than a "cash cow".

NEWER OCCUPATIONS:  In 2002, Home Inspectors began registering with the BTR, and certification became mandatory for all Arizona Home Inspectors beginning January 1st, 2003. I'm not sure when the Drug Lab/Remediation occupations were added.

I've seen first-hand how unfairly Home Inspectors are treated by the BTR.  And through my research, I've come to realize that the Drug Lab/Remediation occupations are also treated unfairly by the BTR.  Therefore, I refer to the Home Inspection and Drug Lab/Remediation occupations as the "BTR's redheaded step-children".  But for the purposes of this report, we'll refer to these occupations as the "newer occupations"!

NOT PROPERLY INTEGRATED - When added, the "newer occupations" were not properly integrated into the BTR’s structure in a logical manner.  In fact, the BTR almost operates like two agencies - the “original occupations” and the "newer occupations".  The resulting system is both unfair and inefficient.  For example, while each of the “original occupations” are represented by at least one Board member, none of the "newer occupations" have any representation on the Board.  The ‘newer occupations’ also pay much higher registration fees.  Furthermore, Home Inspectors seem to be unfairly targeted for disciplinary actions, and then denied their most basic rights during the complaint resolution process.

The BTR was also lazy in that it adpoted Arizona ASHI's® Standard's of Practice as the new "BTR Standards" instead of creating its own standards.  While I understand it would be silly to re-invent the wheel, the Arizona ASHI® Standards of Practice were not written as legislation. As a result, there are several areas which could be improved.  Additionally, ASHI® Standards were never intended to be a minimum standard.  In fact, prior to licensing, those who met ASHI's® Standards and membership qualifications were considered to be among the best home inspectors in the industry.

Not surprisingly, Home Inspectors and the Drug Lab/Remediation occupations are the subject of a disproportionate number of disciplinary actions by the BTR.

Comments

[Dave in Goodyear]

the btr is just a big money grab, you're right. its easy to see what you're saying is true - just look at the btr website. they act like 2 different agencies, 1 for the original occupations and 1 for the newer ones. or call the btr and you can tell from the phone message that they function as 2 agencies. and the newer occupations are treated unfairly in other ways too. just look at how much money home inspectors have to pay for licenses compared to the other occupations. we inspectors always pass that extra cost on to our customers you know.

[Shannon]

Thanks for stopping by Dave. It's definitely all about money to the BTR. And they don't care how much their inefficiency costs since Home Inspectors, and ultimately their clients are paying for it.

[Shannon]

Comments on this post are being closed in order to direct future comments to the MESSAGE BOARD:

http://www.homeinspectorsarepeopletoo.com/2008/01/message-board-m.html