On Monday, February 22nd, the Virginia General Assembly overwhelmingly passed legislation creating a licensure system for professional home inspectors in the Commonwealth. Senate Bill 453, patroned by Sen. Bill Stanley, passed the House of Delegates on a 100-0 vote. The bill previously passed the state Senate 30-9. Governor Terry McAuliffe signed this bill into law on March 2, 2016.

The bill allows any home inspector who is voluntarily certified to be automatically grandfathered into the licensure program as of July 1, 2017 and provides a transition period of approximately a year and a half for anyone not certified who will be required to have a license.

RVAR's Governmental Affairs Committee and Board of Dierctors were among several who encouraged VAR to seek passage of this legislation. This bill was supported by many stakeholders in the real estate industry including home inspectors, Realtors, home builders and banks.