Private Investigator Salary

For many people, becoming a private investigator or a detective holds immense appeal and glamor. The reason for the unprecedented popularity of this seemingly simple profession are the numerous movies and TV shows that show private investigators as brilliant and resourceful crime fighting sleuths. Who can deny the magnetic pull of the evergreen Sherlock Holmes, Jim Rockford, or Elvis Cole, among other lesser known but equally adept private eyes. If you are contemplating becoming a professional private investigator, then you should gather information about all the possible intricacies involved with the job, and also the amount of remuneration to expect as well.

The unmistakable attire of a private investigator wearing a crooked hat, a long overcoat and smoking a cigar are pictures many children are familiar with due to their strong presence in various comic books and TV shows. To make an actual career out of this field though, is an entirely different concept. You must be warned in advance that this job is nothing like what it looks like on TV. If you are under the impression that a private investigator makes loads of easy money then you need to get a reality check. There are long hours involved, the nature of the job sometimes leads to potentially dangerous and risky situations, and to top it all, the average salary figures for a private investigator are not all that great.

What Does a Private Investigator Do?

The nature of the job of a private investigator cannot be comprehensively listed out. The task that needs to be performed depends highly on the nature of the employment of the private investigator. It goes without saying that the average salary for a private investigator will also depend heavily on the nature of employment. Working for an agency will mean that all the costs of investigation will be borne by the agency, but this would also imply a lower income level. The size of the agency will also play a crucial part. Self-employed private investigators will get higher proportions of profit, but their overall revenue will be much lower.

The kind of jobs that the private investigator will be designated to do will also determine the amount of money that they make. Generally speaking, all these jobs can be classified as research based jobs, process serving jobs, surveillance jobs, investigation jobs, witness protection and interviewing jobs and aiding in court matters. Some tasks that will involve a greater amount of risk will obviously pay more. Legal firms may hire private investigators to look into certain cases, track down certain individuals, carry out criminal background checks or other such activities. Individual clients will have a variety of tasks for the private investigator to carry out. All these factors will play an important part in determining the private investigator salary range.

Location of The Private Investigator

Another factor that helps determine the income that comes in is the location of the operation of the private investigator. The nature of clientèle and the area of operation will alter the salary made by any private investigator. Operating in an affluent area and serving affluent clients, would work in the private investigator's favor and enable him to charge a higher fee for his services. Being located in a shady area would fetch lower payments, and also involve jobs that could be shady and nefarious in nature, not to mention dangerous. This factor could help the detectives to extract higher private investigator salaries, but then again, this would depend more on the nature and the income level of the client.

You should also be aware that there are some private investigators who actually pay money from their own pocket, in order to finance their operations. They do this simply for the love of the profession, and in most cases, these are former law enforcement officers who have a lot of time and additional money on their hands. You must not assume that becoming a private investigator will fetch you large sums of money from the word go, so you must choose this profession very carefully as it is only for a select few. Some people even choose to get a professional qualification in order to enhance their career, and this is something that turns out to be an even costlier affair.

Salary of a Private Investigator

Private investigators charge their fees on an hourly basis, and the average salary for a private investigator is $50 an hour. This figure can go as low as $30 an hour, and can even go as high as $200 an hour. As mentioned before, the location of the private investigator, the nature of his employment, and the nature of the task decide what the private investigator salary should be. Apart from these factors, the amount of experience that the detective has in this field and the amount of credibility and contacts that he has, also help decide their prices. The average income for a private investigator who is a newcomer in the field is about $20,000 per year, while the annual salary of a private investigator with a few years experience is about $50,000 is the average salary. Highly experienced and seasoned private investigators can even earn in excess of $75,000 per annum.

Investigators who are employed by agencies are either paid salaries on a monthly basis, or are paid according to the number of work hours that they put in. These are known as billable hours, and the agencies usually pay an investigator a certain percentage (40% on an average) of their hourly rates. For instance, if an agency charges $100 an hour from its client, it will pay the investigator $40 an hour for his services for every billable hour that he works. Hence the remuneration levels will vary from agency to agency, and from investigator to investigator as well.

The life and job of a private investigator is not easy, and there are many nuances and subtleties that must be kept in mind. The money alone is not high enough and assured enough to entice people into this profession. The people who adopt this profession and become a private investigator, are people who have a special affinity and passion for this line of work, coupled with a great network of contacts. If you have this special affinity and ability, then the rest is simply, as Sherlock Holmes would say, "Elementary, dear Watson".