Do draw inspectors need a license?

What the law covers, and what it does not.

A draw inspection is a lender's progress check: the inspector records what is in place against the budget, and the lender decides what to fund. No federal or nationwide license covers that work. State licensing laws for inspectors are written around other activities. An appraisal is a licensed opinion of value (draw inspection vs. appraisal). A building code inspection is made by the local building department (draw inspection vs. building code inspection). A home inspection, where a state licenses it, is written around the condition of a home for its buyer or seller.

Texas is one example of how the lines are drawn. The Texas Real Estate Commission's inspector FAQ says its Standards of Practice apply when an inspection relates to a purchase or sale transaction, and that an inspection not tied to a purchase or sale is governed by the agreement between the inspector and the client. Read your own state's rules before relying on that; a state can define the licensed activity more broadly, and a lender can ask for more than the state does.

Why it matters for inspectors.

The requirement that applies to you comes from three places at once: the state where the property sits, the lender whose draw you are inspecting and the scope of the order. A lender may require a home-inspector license, a named certification, a background check, insurance minimums or a set number of years of experience, and those requirements can differ from one lender to the next on the same street. Ask before you accept work for a new lender, keep copies of every credential you hold, and treat a license or certification as a credential that strengthens an application rather than a ticket that admits you everywhere. Which certifications help is covered on the Draw Inspector Jobs FAQs.

How RAZE handles it.

RAZE does not call its inspectors licensed or certified as a group; it screens them. The Vendor Application publishes the standards every inspector and inspection firm meets before an assignment is visible: identity verification through a third-party provider, a residential draw inspection questionnaire with a minimum passing score, watchlist and AML screening against U.S. and international sanctions and wanted-persons lists, and proof of insurance on file followed by verification and approval by RAZE. Each inspection company or contractor also needs three years of residential draw inspection experience, or a referral or recommendation. The lender's own requirements apply on top of that screening, and a lender that needs a licensed inspector for a particular order says so in the order. The path onto the network is in how to become a draw inspector.