The Canadian Standards Association and the National Home Inspectors Certification Council have signed a memorandum of agreement to work together to establish new standards for home inspectors.

Under the proposal, inspectors would not only have to write an exam, their previous work would also be reviewed along with a peer review in the field.

The President of the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors, Blaine Swan, tells 660News he’s taking a wait and see attitude.

Swan says they have already established national standards which have been adopted by most provincial bodies.

He says it’s difficult to implement national standards because labour issues are a provincial responsibility.

The CAHPI has 1,400 members across the country.

Swan says those in the market for a home inspector shouldn’t be afraid to ask for references before hiring a person for the job.

Alberta established provincial standards for home inspectors in September 2011.