Edward Ranieri was no stranger to the life of a franchisee before he partnered with Pillar to Post, the largest home inspection company in North America. For more than three decades he worked in the cleaning and disaster restoration industry before he decided it was time for a change. After doing a lot of research, he fell upon the Pillar To Post Home Inspection franchise system and noticed they were frequently ranked among the Top 100 to 500 best franchises in various publications such as Entrepreneur Magazine and Franchise Business Review.

Now Ranieri is the proud owner of the Trident area Pillar To Post Home Inspectors franchise located in Charleston. Operating since last fall Ranieri says he wouldn’t change a thing even though he has seen some real messes. “But it makes me feel good to know I am helping even in cases where there are lots of tasks to be done to fix up a house.”

Ranieri still loves the cleaning and restoration industry, so when he started looking for a new challenge, there were plenty of reasons to choose Pillar to Post. You could say home inspection comes at disaster from the other end by trying to prevent it. Now that he's a home inspector, Ranieri spends his days inspecting homes to make sure everything is in order before buyers sign on the dotted line. There's still no telling what life will throw at them, but at least Ranieri can assure them their new home is solidly built and free of infestation.

"When the average consumer is buying a home, it can be a very stressful and vulnerable time for them, not to mention the biggest purchase of their lives," said Ranieri. "If I can make someone feel better about making a payment every month for the next 30 years of their life, I feel I have added some value.

Ranieri feels having owned another franchise in a related industry has helped him build his new business, and he says it's something anyone who's looking for a change can do. "A lot of people don't like their jobs and feel stuck. They're afraid to change," said Ranieri. “"But being in business for yourself is the most rewarding thing you can do,"

 "Change is possible if you don't enjoy what you do. You can take what you did and use it to transition to other industries without feeling you are starting all over again,” said Ranieri.