Jocelyn Cilik left higher education to Lead a House Inspection Franchise
Jocelyn Cilik had impressive achievements in her career as a student affairs administrator in higher education, but she had other goals and priorities. “My life revolves around my kids,” she says. Cilik wanted more time for her children and to build a legacy benefiting her community and family.
She started looking into franchising, and when an established HouseMaster home inspections franchise became available in her area outside Pittsburgh, she researched the brand. After meeting with the HouseMaster team in 2010, her decision to invest in the franchise was solidified.
“It was a great option to build on the brand’s success in Pittsburgh and surrounding areas,” Cilik says. “HouseMaster is a business you can operate as a single owner doing home inspections yourself or with a corporate model as I do. I am in the office, answering phones, supervising inspectors and doing marketing. However, I still have a lot of interaction with the clients when they call and schedule or have questions. It’s nice to see the whole process through, from beginning when they call until after they have their inspections.”
Marketing the Business
Her marketing activities include promoting the business through social media and networking in the community as a member of two chambers of commerce and three Realtor groups. She also runs a group for women in business.
Although Cilik’s schedule seems full, it does provide the flexibility she sought in making the transition from her career in education, which included more than seven years at the University of Pittsburgh where she developed a department helping students navigate their first year of college. “I would do it again,” she says about making the career change.
Founded in 1971 and franchising since 1979, HouseMaster has been a leader in home inspections for decades. The company became part of the Neighborly family of service brands in 2020. HouseMaster’s services include home inspections to evaluate the structure and systems for buyers and sellers involved in real estate transactions, as well as maintenance checkups for homeowners who want to keep their homes in good repair.
“Because the home inspection business is dependent on the real estate market, there have been ups and downs in recent years,” Cilik says. However, projections indicate a healthy compound annual growth rate of 11.4% for the global building inspection services market estimated to reach $19.75 billion in 2026, according to The Business Research Company.
Navigating Challenges
“The biggest challenges we’ve faced have been in navigating the slower times and keeping the business going financially, getting through Covid, and keeping employees and inspectors giving 100% and making sure they are content,” Cilik says.
“With interest rates so high, we are happy to be as busy as we are now,” she says. “We do a lot of marketing and hope to grow, but we take it one month at a time.” Cilik defines success in a multitude of ways. It is persevering through difficult times in a market, building culture in new teams, and growing in number of locations. But success is also found in creating a business that builds independence and opportunity for my family.
“My kids are involved in many sports and we travel a lot with their activities. I also love to cook and bake for my family, and provide a safe and supportive environment. As a working mother who takes a lot of pride in my professional life and my personal life, I pride myself in being a good role model for my children,” she says. “We have a business that is helping our clients and community, and providing employment for five people, and it is ours. In addition, it has given me a lot of flexibility to be there for my kids, my husband and parents.”
For more information, visit https://franchise.neighborly.com/house-master.
