STEVE:  Hi.  This is Steve Westmark.  Thanks once again for watching my weekly video blog.  This week, I’m going to have an expert in here talking on home inspections.  My expert is Jeff Blixt of Inspecta-Homes, and Jeff has had his company for many years.  So welcome, Jeff.

JEFF:  Thank you, Steve.  Thanks for having me here today.

STEVE:  What are the requirements of being a home inspector today?

JEFF:  Okay, Steve, great question.  You know, one of the things that we get asked a lot when people call in to order inspections is they ask what are our qualifications because people assume that in the state we’re either certified; we’re licensed; we’re bonded; and none of that is true.  In the state of Minnesota, there are absolutely no requirements to be a private home inspector.  Anybody that wants to print up a card and call themselves a home inspector is free to do that.  And I think that’s kind of scary from a consumer aspect.

And so we tell people look for how long they’ve been in business, how many inspections have they done, do they do this full time, what affiliations do they belong to.  We have three major affiliations in our market: The American Society of Home Inspectors, The National Association of Home Inspectors, which both require testing, proof of knowledge through experience before they will award certification or membership.

And then we have another local group called The Minnesota Society of Housing Inspectors that deals more with the truth in housing ordinances and time of sale ordinances.  But again, something that consumers should understand is anybody can print up a card, call themselves a home inspector, so you really need to do your due diligence just like you would in hiring any other type of contractor.

STEVE:  Well, my last question for you today, Jeff, is for probably everybody out there who owns a house.  What are things you can do, this being fall going into winter, that you could prepare your house for to protect it going into the new season that we’re going into?

JEFF:  Steve, there’s a lot of things, but I think foremost what a lot of people forget to do is to change their furnace filter.  And we really harp on that.  You know, we rely on that in the state of Minnesota.  With the type of weather we have, we’ve got to have a furnace that we can depend on.  And part of depending on that is maintaining it and taking care of it.  Beyond changing the furnace filter, what a lot of people forget to do is with the air to air exchangers that the newer homes have, those need to be cleaned on a regular basis also. 

And I would say at a minimum twice a year, spring and fall, clean the filters out and make sure that they’re set properly.  Beyond that, shutting off faucets.  This time of year, and we’re going to find some frozen faucets in the next week or two, disconnect those outside hoses, shut them off on the inside or you’re going to have problems with it at some point in time during the winter when it starts to thaw out.

STEVE:  Well, Jeff, thanks so much for coming in today.  Your dad has been a friend of mine for years and he was the guy that started the company years ago, and in fact, is the first inspector company in town.  So Jeff, how do we get a hold of you and your group of inspectors to do the job to help people in buying and selling of houses?

JEFF:  Well, Steve, I thank you again for having me over today.  I do appreciate the opportunity to come and talk with you.  And in regards to my father, I always refer to him at the guru of home inspectors because he really was at the forefront of this industry in this part of the country or actually nationally.  And to get a hold of us to schedule an inspection, we’d love to earn your business, you can call us at 651-641-0641, and we have a full-time office staff that’s there Monday through Friday.  They’ll be more than happy to help you out with any questions you have or certainly scheduling an inspection.  Thank you.