My fascination with housing construction began at an early age. During the summer, on the occasional days that we had no babysitter, I would go to work with my dad where he insulated new homes being built in and around Wichita. I loved walking through the unfinished homes and observing all of the different tradesmen as they worked to bring together all of the pieces and components that make a house function.
As a young man, I was employed by the City of Wichita’s housing department, beginning at an entry level maintenance position. My job was to perform maintenance repairs, along with just a handful of other guys, on Wichita’s almost 600 public housing and apartment properties. After several years on the maintenance side of the department, I began working on the rehab side, where teams of two would make repairs and renovate houses between tenants. I performed almost every kind of repair that you can imagine, from foundation repairs to gutting and rebuilding after a fire. It was invaluable experience, and my hard work paid off as I was promoted several times from entry level maintenance worker to lead maintenance mechanic to Section8 housing inspector. During my time as an inspector with the department, I performed detailed inspections on private properties participating in the Section8 program in accordance with HUD’s strict housing guidelines.
After obtaining a business degree from Wichita State University, I worked for a year in the corporate Human Resources world but eventually ended up back in an inspection role. For several years I worked for one of the nations top analytic companies where I performed commercial building inspections for various insurance underwriters. The standards and expectations for these type of inspections is very high and the education and training that I received was exceptional. In total, I spent over 5 weeks (that’s 200 hours) in classroom training and education and also completed continuing education courses each month. I had a territory that spanned 1/3 of the State of Kansas and inspected everything from multi million dollar commercial properties to small workshops of independent business owners, every week. I loved the work, but the travel time and nights away from my four girls and my wife had begun to take its toll on me. It was time for a change.
There was a need in the Wichita housing market for a qualified housing inspector, and I decided to fill that need. In February of 2016 I formed Kansas Real Estate Inspections with the goal of providing quality, thorough home inspections for home buyers and sellers in and around Wichita. This allowed me to have more time to spend with my family and gave me the joy of being able to help people to better understand one of their biggest investments, the condition of their home.
I love Wichita and the community that we have, and I have a passion for helping people (here and around the world). Everyday I get to use my knowledge and expertise to help people have a better understanding and fuller picture of the properties that they are buying and selling. By increasing transparency in the condition of homes, and explaining routine maintenance that all homes need, buyers and sellers both walk away from the transaction more satisfied.
God has truly blessed me in my life and laid out the path for me to be where I am. I am grateful each and every day for that. If you are buying or selling property in or around Wichita (residential or commercial) give me a call for your inspection needs. I’m a Certified Professional Inspector through InterNachi, insured, accredited by the BBB, an associate member of Realtors of South Central Kansas, SUPRA Key holder, Wichita Chamber member, FEMA certified inspector and involved with the local community and international outreach work. Thanks for reading my story!
Authored by,
Larry Cox
Owner, Certified Professional Inspector
Kansas REI
