Home Inspection

The NAIT Home Inspection Certificate, offered in partnership with Carson Dunlop & Associates, prepares you to launch an exciting new career as a provincially licensed professional Home Inspector.

NAIT is offering a 10-course training program that provides the technical skills and expertise necessary to conduct inspection services to prospective residential homebuyers and sellers.

Each self-paced online course offers easy-to-follow directions. Students will:

• Have access to a personalized online training portal from Carson Dunlop
• Learn inspection procedures
• Have tutor support from NAIT and from Carson Dunlop
• Gain access to Carson Dunlop's Apprenticeship App Insight
• Use Carson Dunlop's Horizon Reporting Software

Students do not need a building-related background to become a Home Inspector but must be technically accurate and able to provide professional customer service to clients.

NAIT is an approved educational provider of home inspection training. This Certificate provides the requisite education to apply for a Home Inspector license through the Government of Alberta.

Quick Facts

• Credential: Certificate of Achievement

• Campus: Main Campus

• Delivery Modes and Times: Varies by class section. See section details for delivery mode and detailed schedule.

Carson Dunlop

Carson Dunlop was founded in 1978 by Alan Carson and is Canada’s oldest and largest home inspection firm. They are the only consulting engineering firm dedicated to all aspects of the building inspection profession – performing inspections, training home inspectors and providing report writing software. The Carson Dunlop Home Inspection Training Program was created based on their 40 years of experience and is recognized by leading associations and licensing bodies across Canada. Alan Carson has been President of the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI), is a founding member of the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors (CAHPI) and is a Past President of the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors (OAHI). Alan has been recognized with numerous awards over the years for his contributions to the profession.

What You Will Learn

The NAIT Home Inspection Certificate is designed to educate in a logical, progressive way. For each component and house system covered in the program, the approach follows this simple 10-step learning process:

1. Introduction of the component or house system (Name and description)
2. What does it do? (Function)
3. What is it made of? (Materials/components)
4. What does it look like? (Appearance/location)
5. How does it work? (Operating sequence/details)
6. What can go wrong? (Non-performance)
7. What causes the problems? (Why did it break?)
8. What are the implications of problems? (What happens if it doesn't do its job?)
9. How do I find out if it is doing its job? (This is the home inspection expert part!)
10. What do I tell my client? (The report) 
 

Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Describe the leading systems and components of a house or housing unit, including roofing, structure, electrical, heating, air conditioning/heat pumps, plumbing, interiors, and exteriors.

• Understand the function and operational principles of the systems and components in a residential housing unit.

• Identify common problems, failure modes and the life expectancies of various systems.

• Understand why problems occur, and the implications when system malfunctions or breaks down.

• Perform requisite home inspection activities and operational tests to meet industry standards of practice.

• Describe the home inspection process, communicate inspection findings to the client, and prepare a written report.

Learning Resources
Students will receive an email with course information by the last business day before the start date. Pre-purchasing the textbook is not required as all course content will be available on Learning Management system. If you wish to purchase a hard copy of the textbook please send an email to ced_ast@nait.ca for a coupon code.

Course Map
Students must achieve a minimum grade of 70% to successfully complete each course.

Career Opportunities

If you are a good communicator, enjoy working with people and have an interest in construction and how things work, Home Inspection may be right for you. 

As a Certified Home Inspector, you may choose to start your own home inspection business or work for an established home inspection company.
For information on Home Inspector provincial licensing requirements in Alberta, please visit the Service Alberta Home Inspector's Licence page. Licensing requirements vary among provinces.

FAQ