This document summarizes eligibility for licensed home inspector subscribers (LHISs) in Doorify MLS, as well as their rights and duties and an outline of the agreement that they will sign for services. The goal of this policy is to permit home inspectors licensed under North Carolina law to access showing scheduling and property access services provided by Doorify MLS where sellers and listing brokers consent.

Eligibility

Licensed home inspector (LHI) subscription is available to natural persons; subscription is not by company. In the event any individual in a firm of licensed inspectors obtains anLHI subscription, all the licensed inspectors in that firm active in Alamance, Caswell, Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Halifax, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Nash, Orange, Person, Vance, Wake and Warren counties of North Carolina must also be LHISs. LHISs may not share their system login IDs/passwords, electronic lockbox keys, or other access information with other LHISs, other licensed home inspectors, non-licensed staff or contractors (whether those individuals are in the same firm as the LHIS or not), or any other person under any circumstances.

Any person seeking a licensed home inspector subscription to Doorify MLS must satisfy the following qualifications.

1. The candidate may NOT be a REALTOR®. (REALTORS® seeking inspector access must join the MLS by affiliating with an MLS participating broker or appraiser.)

2. The candidate must hold an active home inspector license, in good standing, from the North Carolina Home Inspector Licensure Board (NCHILB), as confirmed on the NCHILB website.

3. The candidate must complete the Doorify MLS Licensed Home Inspector Subscriber Application.

4. The candidate must pay the setup and quarterly fees.

Duties and Rights

LHISs have all the following duties:

1. Maintain licensure at all times with the North Carolina Home Inspector Licensure Board (NCHILB). 

2. Pay all Doorify MLS subscription fees on time. DMLS’s board of directors establishes subscription fees, which may change from time to time upon notice to subscribers.

3. Access control: The LHI subscription is personal to the LHIS. He or she may not use any lockbox key or access information to provide access to a property to any person but the LHIS him- or herself, unless the other person is accompanying the LHIS when entering a property and the other person’s presence is required for the purpose of inspecting the home on behalf of the LHIS’s client. Such other persons may include inspectors under the LHIS’s supervision or training, but not any potential buyer of the property. LHIS is liable for actions of other persons he or she admits to a property as if the LHIS had committed those actions him- or herself.

4. Security: Any LHIS accessing a property must ensure that he or she leaves it in a state of security at least as great as when he or she arrived.

5. Liability: Any LHIS accessing a property is liable to the property’s owner for any damage caused by the LHIS’s misconduct or negligence. The LHIS is liable to the property’s owner for any damage or losses resulting from the LHIS’s failure to re-secure the property. The LHIS will indemnify Doorify MLS and the seller’s and buyer’s brokers for any defense costs and liability allegedly arising from these causes.

6. Insurance/bonding: Each LHIS shall maintain insurance and bonding at least as comprehensive and with limits at least as high as required by the version of North Carolina Administrative Code (NCAC), Section 11NCAC08 .1006, in effect on October 1, 2013.In the event coverage limits in NCAC are revised downward by the state, the higher requirements in effect on October 1, 2013, shall apply to this policy; in the event the provisions of NCAC are revised upward by the state, the higher requirements will be applicable to LHISs as a consequence of their licensure.

7. Notification to listing firm: The LHIS who obtains access to a property must notify the listing broker before the LHIS leaves the premises if the property was not secured when the LHIS arrived.

8. Appropriate advertising: LHIS may advertise his or her affiliation with Doorify MLS subject to these requirements:

• LHIS may describe him- or herself as a “Licensed Home Inspector Subscriber of Doorify MLS” or as a “Doorify MLS Licensed Home Inspector Subscriber.”
• LHIS may not use the Doorify MLS logo in conjunction with his or her marketing or that of his or her firm.
• LHIS may not claim to be a REALTOR® or use the “REALTOR®” marks.
• LHIS may not claim to be a “member,” “participant,” or “subscriber” (except as provided above) of Doorify MLS.

Doorify MLS may terminate any LHI subscription upon 7 days’ notice to an LHIS that he or she has failed to satisfy any of these requirements. In the case of minor infractions(e.g., an advertisement by an LHIS that inadvertently contains wording inconsistent with this policy), a warning or fine will be administered. LHI subscription automatically terminates if the LHIS becomes a REALTOR® or becomes an MLS subscriber of Doorify MLS by affiliating with a Doorify MLS broker or appraiser participant.

LHISs have the following rights under LHI subscription:

1. LHIS shall have access to Doorify MLS’s ShowingService (ShowingTime), but not access to any MLS listing data.

2. LHIS may possess automated access control tools and keys provided by Doorify MLS for electronic lockboxes(SentriLock)subject to payment of applicable fees.

3. LHIS shall have access to properties via ShowingTime and SentriLock, provided the seller and listing broker have permitted access via these means. Note that:

• Listing brokers discuss appointment and access options with property owners, who may elect not to permit automated scheduling and access through ShowingTime and SentriLock.
• Listing brokers may prefer to manage their relations with clients through means other than ShowingTime and SentriLock (including direct contact with the listing broker), and thus may not permit automated scheduling and access through Doorify MLS’s systems.

4. LHIS shall have no other rights associated with REALTOR® association membership or Doorify MLS participation.

Agreement

Doorify MLS will prepare an LHI subscription agreement that includes all applicable provisions from Doorify MLS’s existing participant and subscriber agreements (but not provisions that are irrelevant for LHISs), with the addition of any terms necessary to implement these policies.