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Ethan Payne, owner of
Ethan Payne Home Inspections.
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Never quite knowing what he wanted to be
when he grew up, Ethan did know that he like
seeing his dad drive around in a nice big truck
and talk to people all over town. Ethan liked
what he saw and secretly hoped that maybe one
day, he would join the Payne heritage. When
his dad Eric asked him to come to work with
him, Ethan jumped at the opportunity, and any
time he was out of school, Ethan was working
along side his dad inspecting houses. When his
dad offered to pay for him to attend the home
inspections’ program, Ethan walked through the
opened door.
Just as pretty paint, granite counter tops
and a wreath of greenery do not mean a house
is a solid investment, so too with life. Just as a
home inspection may uncover termite damage
or black mold or maybe some electrical damage
amongst the woven layers of a dream home, so
too life unveils the joy and pain, the beauty in
the broken. In taking a moment to share a cup
of coffee together, we enjoyed an opportunity to
inspect many life moments.
Established on August 30, 2019, Ethan Payne
Home Inspections is securing its own foundation
in our community. Around the business for
generations, Ethan shares, “My grandfather is
a contractor; my father is a contractor. When
my uncle got into home inspections, my
grandfather joined in with my dad following in
his footsteps.” From Earl to Eric to Ethan, truly
all things “home” run in the family as Ethan
walks the familiar blueprint.
With every Ethan Payne Home Inspection
performed, Ethan likes to start on the rooftop
and work his way down through the plumbing,
electrical, foundation and into the crawlspace.
He follows a system rather than a checklist and
truly seeks to invest in the clients who invest
in his services. Ethan informs, “With home
inspections, many people want you to work for
the Realtor so that they can sell their house. But
no matter what, I work for the client, and I don’t
want anyone to move into a house that they
really don’t want. I show the client what they are
getting for their investment so they know what
they are buying.”
Ethan Payne Home Inspections is, “Reliable!”
assures Ethan. “I am reliable, honest and will
show up on time. Helping people and helping
people secure a safe home for their family
remains the foundation of my business.”
A local business owner at 21—Wow! He did
it! However as Ethan’s home inspections begin
from the top down, we agree the getting to the
top is the tricky part. Just as new construction
begins with breaking the ground in order to
build a strong, successful foundation, so too the
building of a purposed life begins in brokenness.
Growing up in a split home, the oldest of three
sons, Ethan struggled early on with value,
acceptance and self-confidence. Changing
schools in middle school, Ethan transitioned
from Calvary Christian School to becoming the
first sixth grade class to attend Crain’s Creek
Middle School.
The middle school years brought new
challenges as the feelings of low self worth
manifested in weight gain. The laughs from the
other students still fill the quiet moments. Ethan
recounts, “I was one of the bigger kids in school,
and all of the other kids laughed at me. Now
whenever I see other kids being mean, it upsets
me because they don’t understand what that
other child is going through.”
Living with his mom and brothers, Ethan
saw firsthand the struggles that single moms
face as they build a new house plan. Learning
so many life lessons early on were tough in the
moment, but upon looking back, Ethan gives
thanks. Learning how to get back up after the
knockdowns supplied the strength needed to go
on that first run to lose the weight. That first step
out the door was the hardest. That first workout
in the gym was the most painful. Finding the
strength to get better, stronger, faster and to lose
the weight has resulted in 75 pounds lost and
infinite strength gained! Victory!
Upon turning eighteen, Ethan resolved to
conquer the check list of needed repairs found
in his relationship with his dad. When Ethan
was considering a career as a Navy Seal, his
dad invited him to a home inspection and so
grew the relationship. When the opportunity to
attend the home inspection program began, so
too the testing of his confidence all over again.
Within the six month program, forty hours of
online training and twenty hours of classroom
instruction culminated into an exam in Raleigh
and a long wait for the scores.
Failed. When Ethan learned that he had failed
the first test, all of the emotions and questions
resurfaced as water damage buckles a sub floor.
Ethan remembers the discouragement, “I did not
pass the test the first time, and I started feeling
like maybe I wasn’t supposed to be doing home
inspections. And then having to tell everyone in
my family and in the field that I hadn’t passed—I
felt so unworthy.”
With the same doubts swirling, Ethan took
the test all over again after the required six–
month wait. Internalizing a negative dialogue
that he wasn’t going to pass, while taking the
test defeated any chance of victory. Out of two
hundred questions, one could miss sixty. Ethan
recounts, “I missed sixty-one. I failed by one
p.30 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. No. 138
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