Why do the questions matter more in Georgia?

Georgia has no license, exam, or training requirement for home inspectors. Anyone can print the title on a business card. The state’s Trade Practice Act sets a floor for honest practice, but nobody checks competence before an inspector takes your money. So the interview is yours to run, and it takes about five minutes on the phone. The Georgia buyer’s guide has the full background.

What should you ask about credentials?

  • “What certifications do you hold, and since when?” Voluntary national organizations such as ASHI hold members to standards of practice, ethics rules, and continuing education that Georgia does not require. Membership you can verify in a public directory beats a logo on a website.
  • “How long have you been inspecting homes under this business name?” Tenure you can check, such as a Better Business Bureau profile, is harder to fake than a slogan.
  • “Do you carry insurance?” Errors-and-omissions and general liability coverage are reasonable things to ask any inspector about directly.
  • “Where can I read your reviews?” Then actually read them. Look for what customers describe: time taken, findings explained, questions answered afterward.

What should you ask about the inspection itself?

  • “What does your inspection cover, and what is excluded?” A standard inspection is visual and non-invasive. A clear inspector tells you both halves without being pushed.
  • “How long will you be on site?” Industry guidance puts a typical single-family inspection at roughly two to four hours. Be wary of anyone promising a much faster visit; ask what gets skipped to hit that time. More in how long an inspection takes.
  • “Can I be there for the walkthrough?” The answer you want is an easy yes. ASHI-affiliated guidance encourages attendance, and the findings walkthrough is where the report starts making sense. Ask how the inspector likes to handle it: many work the house first, then bring you in. See attending your inspection.
  • “Do you offer the add-on tests I need?” If you want radon, mold, or other specialty testing, confirm availability and scheduling when you book rather than on inspection day.

What should you ask about the report?

  • “Can I see a sample report?” The single most revealing question. A good sample shows photos, plain-language findings, and a structure that separates urgent items from maintenance notes.
  • “When will I have it?” Delivery speed varies by inspector, and inside a Georgia due-diligence window the difference matters. Get a concrete answer for your inspection.
  • “Will you walk me through the findings?” The report should come with explanation, not instead of it.

What should you ask about afterward?

Ask whether you can call with questions once the report is delivered. Some inspectors hand off the PDF and move on; the better ones treat the inspection as the start of the relationship. It is also a fair question months later, when something in the report becomes relevant to a repair decision.

How does Davis Home Inspections answer these?

In the spirit of the vetting this guide recommends, here are the checkable facts for this site’s owner: Scott Davis is an ASHI Certified Inspector (member since 2017), inspecting homes since 2014, with a 5.0 rating across Google, Facebook, and Yelp and a BBB A+ profile. On the afterward question, his customers answer it better than he could:

He was more than glad to take all 500 of my calls 🤓 I trust this man.

(Kristain Wilkes, Google review, quoted verbatim.)

Thoroughly checked the home and answered questions I had after they left.

(Amy, Google review, quoted verbatim.)

Apply the same questions to him that you would apply to anyone. That is the point of the list.