About

Early History of AAREI

Back in the early wild west days of home inspecting in Arkansas, all you had to do to start a home inspection business was print up some business cards and buy a shiny new flashlight. In the fall of 1991, Roy Bilheimer, then executive director of the Arkansas Real Estate Commission, contacted all the known home inspectors across the state and requested our presence at a meeting at the Commission's offices in Little Rock.

Those in attendance at that initial meeting included Tom Allen, David Bolain, a Realtor from northwest Arkansas and an ARA zone director, Dave Brunell, Lowell Coomer, Michael Crase, Gary Isom, assistant director of the real estate commission, Bob Jordan, J.P. Mallon, Art McBride, Greg Quinney and Steve Williams.

Out of that meeting, the Arkansas Association of Real Estate Inspectors was born. Mr. Bilheimer advised those in attendance that we needed to organize and discipline the industry. He closed the door with the admonition,"You can use this room as long as you like, but when you break up, I expect you guys to have a plan." Tom Allen provided the initial funding for the Association and we elected Bob Jordan the first president of the Association. Of the original founding members all are still active in the business with the exception of Mr. Crase, an architect who left the home inspecting business many years ago and Mr. McBride who is deceased.

Modeled upon the ASHI organization, AAREI went to work. Thanks to the long range strategic thinking of a very insightful man, Arkansas today has one of the most progressive real estate inspection statutes in the nation. AAREI and its members were instrumental in writing and promoting the Homes Inspection Registration Act of 2003 and participated in the process at every step.