Pros and Cons of Being a Building Inspector
I can't really believe it, but I'm getting ready to start my 10th year as a building and plumbing inspector for a city jurisdiction. My postion is NOT a home inspector - which is the inspector who shows up when someone buys a house - but rather I'm an inspector that looks at work where a permit is required. As like any job, none of them are perfect but if I had compare the life of a building inspector to many others, it's really a pretty great gig.
I rarely take my work home with me. If I do, it's definitely due to my type-A nature and wanting to be proactive and organized. Once my inspection requests are scheduled and I've made the phone calls needed to answer homeowner or contractor questions, all that is left for me to do is visit all of the necessary permit sites and get my inspections done for the day. Not bad for a daily work load and the stress level!
That said, sure - there are a few cons to the job - like there are with any job.
Working for the government, I can find some of the policies and requirements to be over the top. However, that's definitely the beauty of working out in the field: you don't have to be around it if you don't want to.
Spending hours upon hours in your car can also be a drain on your body as well. I've seen a chiropractor more times in the past 10 years then I did in my earlier days working in construction. Of course, some of that could be blamed on the simple fact of me just getting older but I am sure sitting in a car 5 days a week doesn't help.
One of my favorite parts of the job is getting to help homeowners or contractors who have questions and want to complete their project the right way. But, one of the worst parts is when those homeowners or contractors do work without a permit and I have to issue a stop work on their project. Telling anyone that they did something wrong and that they now need to halt all progress and pay a fine is not a great thing by any stretch of the imagination. Thus the reason for Building Code Tips!
Here are a few more of the pro's and con's that I have seen since my first days as an inspector:
Cons:
1. Government
2. Spending hours in a car
3. Dealing with difficult personalities
4. Issuing "Stop Work" citations for work being done without a permit
Pros:
1. Freedom and autonomy
2. Finishing all work within the day and not having anything to bring home
3. Getting to be outside and moving around (in all types of weather!)
4. Participating in the construction of projects where you work and live but not having to put on a tool belt and beat up your body
5. Developing relationships with contractors without the stress of actually being the contractor
6. Government perks, medical, and retirement options. (Right now I work a 9/80 schedule and get an extra day off every 2 weeks - not a bad gig!)
7. Set hours and no overtime necessary allows for more family and friend time and ensures I have the ability to recharge after even the busiest of days.
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