what is in house 
in house refers to an activity or operation that is performed within a company instead of relying on outsourcing the firm uses its own employees and time to perform a business activity such as financing or brokering this is the opposite of outsourcing which involves hiring outside assistance often through another business to perform those activities understanding in housethe determination as to whether to keep activities in house or to outsource often involves analyzing the various costs and associated risks how these costs are calculated may vary depending on the size and nature of the core business a firm may decide to keep certain activities in house such as accounting payroll marketing or technical support while it can be cheaper to outsource those divisions there are also circumstances where it pays to invest in in house professionals in house financing is provided by many retailers helping to facilitate the purchasing process for customers additionally keeping these activities in house may allow the business to exert higher levels of control by keeping the services and personnel under direct control there may also be fewer security risks depending on the kinds of data that would have to be supplied to an outside party should the activity be outsourced at times internal employees may have a better understanding of how the business functions overall providing them with insights into how certain activities should be handled allowing them to function with the business s core vision at the forefront of the decision making process in house services