WESTBROOK – Brandon Lussier of Westbrook didn’t have the easiest path to owning his own business, but the 30-year-old ex-Marine has applied lessons learned from personal challenges to his expanding profession.

Beginning in 2014, Lussier started his own franchise of Pillar to Post Home Inspectors, a company that operates nationwide. Headquartered on Oriole Street off County Road in Westbrook, his business has already conducted 140 inspections, a process that helps potential homeowners make tough decisions on whether to buy real estate.

From a young age, Lussier involved himself in real estate, purchasing an apartment building when he was only 21. On top of being a certified home inspector, Lussier is also certified in Maine for radon testing in both air and water, and is an Environmental Solutions Association-certified mold inspector.

Lussier had to overcome life-changing obstacles to get to where he is now, challenges that include surviving childhood leukemia. When he was just 4 years old, Lussier was given a 10 percent chance of survival, and battled the disease for a number of years.

Upon graduating from high school in Portland, Lussier entered the Marines in 2003. He was honorably discharged in 2004 after suffering a serious bite by a poisonous spider.

The American Journal spoke with Lussier about the challenges he’s faced, what he’s learned from them, and what it’s like to be a home inspector.

Q: Your path to where you are now wasn’t easy. Tell us about your childhood battle with leukemia. How did that experience shape you as a person?

A: When I was 4, I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. I remember spending my fifth birthday in the hospital receiving chemotherapy treatment. The doctors gave me only a 10 percent chance of surviving cancer. I survived the odds, although it had taken a few years to be completely free of cancer.

Q: You owned your first apartment building when you were only 21. How did that experience set you up for eventually being a building inspector?

A: I knew real estate was a good thing to get into, especially at a young age. Purchasing my own apartment building at 21 was tough. It was hard to gain the respect of my tenants. I found out it was all about the way you approach them. I did everything myself. I did all the maintenance and repairs. When an apartment became open I would remodel. I believe that is what really began my path into the real estate field.

Q: Your exit from the Marines is a frightening story. Tell me about the incident that led to your honorable discharge?

A: I really wanted to follow the family path since my older brother, my father, and my grandfather were all in the Marine Corps. My time was short lived due to getting bit by a brown recluse spider in North Carolina, but the Marines taught me a lot. I wanted something that would challenge me, and it certainly did. The spider bite was on the heel of my foot, and the venom from the bite ate away a lot of ligaments from that area and I had to do physical therpy. I was in the hospital for about a week and physical therapy for six months after. It was difficult at times but it is much better now.

Q: Following the incident, how did you land on your feet? Did you know that you wanted to do something in real estate?

A: I decided to go to college and was also working for the U.S. Postal Service. It kept me really busy being 21, owning apartment buildings, having a full-time job and going to school full time. In 2007, I built my first home in Windham. It was something I always wanted to do. From that point on, I knew real estate was where I wanted to be. After years of working on my own apartments and building my own home, I figured it would be something I would be good at.

Q: What does it mean to be a certified home inspector? Why did you want to start your own franchise?

A: Becoming a certified home inspector with Pillar to Post was challenging. Their training is extensive and very thorough. They send you to California to undergo rigorous training, and you have to pass a final written and physical inspection exam with at least an 80 percent or higher. I felt that using the resources of a franchise rather than doing it on my own would be much better for me. Pillar to Post is the leader in home inspections; they have over 400 franchises in the U.S., and the resources they have are endless.

Q: What does a typical home inspection look like? What are some of the most interesting things you’ve found during an inspection so far?

A: A typical home inspection is about 2-3 hours long. It is typically between the buyer’s real estate agent and the client buying the home. I go through the home evaluating over 1,600 items, encourage my clients to be present, and for them to follow me around and ask me any questions they may have. I simply say no question is a dumb question when you are spending that kind of money on a home. I have done over 140 inspections in 2014. It’s something new every day. I have seen houses being held up by automobile jacks, and whole attics where the sheathing is full of black mold.

Q: How does a Pillar to Post franchisee operate? Were there any difficulties in kicking off the business? Do you work will mostly Westbrook residents?

A: Pillar to Post is the largest home inspection company around. If I want to reach some of the most successful Pillar to Post owners, they are just a phone call away. Being able to do that means a lot. Clients get a full inspection binder with a lot of useful info, and inspection reports are printed on site so that I can go over the whole inspection while both the client and agent are present. I knew going into this field would be tough, and a lot of people told me I was crazy because it’s such a tough field to get into. I will travel all around the state of Maine for a home inspection; I don’t want to limit myself to a certain area.

Q: Do you have any aspirations beyond home inspection? Are there other avenues you’d like to travel in the real estate profession?

A: As of right now my heart is in home inspection. Down the road there may be other paths I do on top of home inspections, but for the most part this is where I want to be. I hope to be able to hire my first employee early next year if things keep going like this. My goal is to keep building my business.

Brandon Lussier