I was thinking of a career change is it worth it?
How hard is it to get into?

In general, I would say that if you can make a living doing something else worth while, I would advise you to do so.  That warning given:

I have a PI license in TX and been i the business for 14 years.  I'm not currently working in the field as I wanted a change for awhile.  It can be a good field or a waste of time.  There are a lot of morons in the business that I wonder how they stay in business, but there are also some very good people.  The trick in getting into the PI line of work is to start working with good investigators that work a wide range of civil matters.  People you can learn from and are professional.  Stay away from criminal investigations for the most part as there is no money in it.  ABSOLUTELY stay away from companies that specialize in surveillance because those are dead end jobs from the start.  

Investigator positions are few and far between, most are pretty lame, good positions are hard to come by.  I personally have done well in the business and cannot complain but it is not like that for everyone.

Thanks

Hope I wasn't too discouraging!

If you do pursue it though, civil litigation is where the money is at.  But this means you have to be part investigator, part paralegal, part lawyer.  Like I said, stay away from the srveillance companies, look for law firm or SIU (speciaol investigatiosn unit) insurance positions.  Large companies tend to offer better job seciurity and benefits but lowsey pay.  Smaller companies tend to be the better positions with higher pay but have their own risks.

You will also never be rich in that profession but can make a good earning.  New investigators cn make anwhere from $20K's-$30's.  Experienced investigators are generally around $30K-$45K.  Senior investigators about $40K-$60K+.  Owners of a small to medium sized company can earn in the area of $300K, but that is a 24/7 job and not for everybody!

Good luck.

You will be competing with a large pool of retired agents and officers, and the pay for staff is not that great.   You'd be wise to learn first how to get business so that when you get tired of working for other people, you can set out on your own.

There are experience requirements in many states before you can get licensed, and one guy I know had a guy he worked for refuse to sign off on the hours he'd earned, because it was a small semi-rural office in a big company, and the refusal was reportedly out of fear he'd take business away.  There weren't many PI shops in the immediate area that he could move to, either.

So carefully size up the job situation before comitting to any specific one.

In Texas you have to be licensed under somebody elses license for 3 years before you are eligible to apply for your own license.  So no need for the registered owner to sign off on any paperwork for you (speaking of TX of course, check your license requirements in TN).  

Depends on where you live. I have a good friend that runs a PI firm in Tampa, FL and I love helping out, or tagging along on tails and surveillance. Mostly he deals with insurance fraud and cheating spouses. Both are pretty cool once you catch the subject in the act. And it pays very well. Insurance companies pay out bigtime to avoid paying out more in claims. Spouses will empty their bank accounts or max out credit cards to find out what their significant other is up to. He makes bank, and employs 2-3 other people.


- rem

Somebody's gotta say it, and it might as well be me:

You wanna be a DICK?