Vilonia couple runs state's only home inspector training school

VILONIA Joe and Betty Maxwell of Vilonia, not only talk the talk they teach what they talk.

Under the umbrella of ABC Consultants Inc., the couple operate a real estate inspection service. They also run the only home inspector training school in the state and graduate students, four times per year. Licensing requires 80 hours of class room instruction and 14 hours of continuing education every year.

"Our classes bring people in from several states," Maxwell said.

They hold the 80 hour licensing classes quarterly with 15 to 20 in attendance, and they hold continuing education classes four times per year.

Maxwell is one of five on the staff that teaches and is the only certified master inspector in the state. He has a bachelor's degree in business administration, a master's degree in business and human development and a doctorate degree in business.

In December, he also took over the reins as president of the Arkansas Association of Real Estate Inspectors, a non profit organization, boasting of about 130 members who strongly emphasize and promote education and standards of practice in the field. According to the Maxwells, there are 252 licensed inspectors in the state. Arkansas passed legislation in 2002 requiring the licensing of all home inspectors. Realizing a need for such a school in the state, the Maxwells achieved certification and opened their school in 2006.

"We didn't see why you should have to go out of state for training," he said.

Maxwell, who is the founder and president of ABC, actually began the business as a consulting company in 1997 assisting small businesses, non-profits and government entities in acquiring government grants. In addition, she is also a licensed Arkansas Home Inspector and a registered Arkansas appraiser with a master's degree in business administration. Her husband joined the business in 2002.

While home inspection is not a current mandatory in Arkansas, the Maxwells say they believe it will be the wave of the future. And, they said, already some banks will not make loans without the service.

"You shouldn't buy a house based on whether the color of the paint is pretty," Maxwell said.

A home inspection, he said, should be from the dirt to the peak of the roof and by a licensed inspector.

The Maxwells are currently developing a software program that will be on the market in February specifically designed for inspectors in the southern states.