Start your home inspection business loan-free

By Published On: August 31st, 2016Categories: Home Inspection Career Guide0 Comments

Most budding entrepreneurs seek conventional ways to secure money to start their businesses. Home inspectors are no different. Although starting a home inspection business may require less capital than other small businesses, you will still need seed money to get it up and running. Wouldn’t it be great if you could start your home inspection business loan-free?

“…there are different ways in which you can still ensure to get your business on floors without having to run around banks to provide loans,” Mehul Rajput, CEO of Mindinventory, a company that develops iOS and Android apps, wrote in an article for Business.com.

“Right from utilizing personal savings, to getting funds from your friends or family members, you can definitely ensure that your business sees the light of the day,” Rajput continued. “Moreover, with the norms for business lending getting tougher, exploring some other methods to finance your startup is the best foot forward.”

Here are several ideas from Rajput’s “You Can Do It: How to Start a Business Without a Loan” to help you start your home inspection business loan-free.

Initiate it as part time — This may be a little difficult to do if you’re already working a full-time job. But if you are willing to squeeze some time in during the week and on holidays to work on launching your business, it’s a great way to get started, Rajput noted.

Start out with the bare minimum — Use as little money as possible until your business begins to see a profit. Rajput suggested starting out with a home office instead of renting office space, choosing used equipment and doing your marketing yourself.  Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram are great choices for free marketing.

Seek funding from close ones — If you’re uncomfortable asking family members and close friends for financial help in starting their business, don’t be. Approach them the same way you would a bank or lending institution, with a solid business plan in place.

“Having figures handy can help you gain confidence and ensure that you pitch in the right method for sourcing from close ones,” Rajput wrote. Don’t forget to provide your financiers with payback dates.

Partner or an investor — Having a partner can be beneficial, according to Rajput. This person can help with accounting, marketing and other things to help get your business off the ground and keep it running smoothly. If you prefer to keep the business your own, seek out investors to provide capital.

“With an investor, you can be assured of funds to propel your ideas and yet ensure that you remain the sole proprietor,” Rajput wrote.

Reinvest profits — This is important if you want your business to remain loan-free, according to Rajput.

“Investing guidelines from experts can also be beneficial to ensure that excess funds are invested correctly so that you can reap rewards,” he wrote.

Source: “You Can Do It: How to Start a Business Without a Loan,” Business.com (Aug. 12, 2016).

About the Author: Kristin Warner

Kristin is the Marketing Director at AHIT. She has authored content for numerous real estate brands, and managed corporate communications for a public real estate company. She is passionate about the home inspection and real estate industries, and loves digging into research to provide insights that empower home inspectors and real estate agents in their businesses.