Habitat Home Inspections donates 10 percent of income to Habitat for Humanity

Habitat Home Inspections owner Brian Mattioli created the business in 2017 with the goal of putting people over profit. To do this, Mattioli donates 10 percent of his gross business income to Habitat for Humanity in Whatcom County (HFHWC).

He first got the idea to donate part of his income after reading a book that encourages business owners to create business models that give back locally and prioritize people over profit. Mattioli grew up in a family that was exposed to many areas of real estate such as buying, renting, construction, flipping and
maintenance.

“Prior to becoming an inspector I personally made many mistakes with buying real estate,” he said. “I ended up paying a lot of money to learn some important lessons about doing your due diligence.”

Mattioli said it is because of his personal experiences and desire to help people make informed decisions when purchasing, selling or investing in real estate that he started his home inspection business.

“I offer home, pest and sewer line inspections as well as infrared thermal imaging to look for thermal defects you might not see with your eyes,” he said. Clients hire Mattioli when they want to put an offer on a house that has an offer review date, when an offer is accepted with an inspection contingency, after they have an offer accepted but have waived the inspection contingency or when they want to have an inspection for informational purposes.

While finishing his undergraduate degree at Trinity Western University in 2008, Mattioli signed up for a spring break trip to help a Habitat for Humanity (HFH) affiliate in Hawaii. 

“After my first trip I was hooked and I have done HFH volunteering in California, Hawaii, Washington and Nevada,” he said. “I am actively involved in the HFHWC affiliate, recently installing flooring for their Telegraph Road townhome development, as well as Sudden Valley homes where I give a 50 percent discount or do it as a volunteer.”

Mattioli said his goal is to help raise awareness of HFHWC. “I send an annual client email to help them see how their 10 percent made a difference in affordable housing in Whatcom
County.”

He said he hopes his business encourages people to shop at the Bellingham HFH store, donate to the store or even volunteer at one of the builds. “All of which will help provide affordable housing to families who need a hand up in a very expensive place to live,” he said. 

As a non-franchise home inspection business owner, Mattioli said he gets to choose how he runs his business and he encourages clients to call him anytime. He said he treats the inspection as if family or a friend were buying the property, which has helped his clients greatly, and they have given him a lot of great feedback because of this approach.

“What makes my business different is I go beyond the standard of practice instead of meeting the minimum standards,” he said. “I won’t sacrifice quality. However long it takes to do the inspection right is what matters most.”