Question 1

Why shouldn’t I just match other inspectors’ prices?

Accepted Answer

Because another inspector’s price is built on another business: different pay, volume, drive time, report time, overhead, and profit expectations. A competitor’s number may be useful market context, but it cannot tell you whether your own price covers the work. Start with your true cost, then decide how you want to position the inspection in the market.

Question 2

What belongs in overhead, and how do I avoid double-counting admin time?

Accepted Answer

Overhead is the cost of keeping the business open whether or not one particular inspection happens: office costs, software, insurance, memberships, and other company-level expenses. Allocate total monthly overhead across the inspections your company actually completed, not the jobs you wish you had. Per-job admin labor, including scheduling, client coordination, and report delivery, belongs in the inspection calculation instead. Put each cost in one place, and leave it out of the other if it is already included.

Question 3

Should add-on services make up for a low base inspection price?

Accepted Answer

No. Add-ons should pay for the extra time, risk, equipment, and reporting they require; they should not quietly rescue a base inspection that loses money. Your base price needs to stand on its own first. Once it does, add-ons can be priced as clear additional work instead of becoming a hidden subsidy or a source of pressure to sell more on every job.

Question 4

How should mileage and travel be priced?

Accepted Answer

Count the real cost of getting to and from the job: drive time, fuel, vehicle ownership, maintenance, insurance, tolls, and the wear on your schedule. You can recover that cost inside the base price, with a clearly defined travel policy, or with a separate mileage structure, but apply the choice consistently. If fuel is already included in your vehicle cost, do not add it again as a separate expense.

Question 5

What does the Know Your Number method actually calculate?

Accepted Answer

It calculates your true cost per inspection from the numbers behind the work: inspector pay and payroll burden, on-site and drive time, reporting and admin time, annual business costs, overhead, and your target profit. It then shows a floor price, a more stable position, a growth-oriented position, and the hourly floor behind them. It does not choose a market price for you; it gives you a number you can defend before you make that decision.

The questions behind the price.

Useful answers. Plain language.

Put the method to work on your numbers.