What You Need to Know About Pest Inspections

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A pest inspection is often referred to as a termite inspection, which leads people to think that the inspector is also on the lookout for ants and spiders. That is not the case. A termite inspection is really a WDO inspection, which means we look for wood destroying organisms. Those include different types of termites, beetles, or carpenter bees, as well as fungus and dry rot.

Different types of termites require different treatment. Subterranean termites live in the ground and come up into your home through the ground. Dry wood termites fly from trees or other houses and just live in your house.

Orange oil is a great new treatment for dry wood termites. It used to be that we had to fumigate the home, and the owners would have to relocate for awhile. With orange oil, you don't have to go through the hassle of finding another place to stay, and it smells great.

If termites are found, the typical eradication treatments range anywhere between $750 and $2,000, although the average is probably around $1,100. Dry rot treatment can be more expensive because you may need to hire a carpenter to replace the wood.

When you get your pest inspection report, it is broken into three sections. Section one lists active damage, which means termites are in the home. Section two lists anything that could lead to termites or dry rot, such as a termite colony nearby. Section three is simply a summary and a quote for any necessary treatments.

If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

How Can You Take Control of the Selling Process?

Selling Your Northern California Home? Get a free home value report
Buying a Northern California Home? Search all homes for sale
 

As the spring market really gets going here in Northern California, I want to address a question I've been getting from a lot of clients. What exactly is a pre-inspection? Should you get one? Today, I answer both of these questions for you.

As part of our Smart Home Selling Strategy, we always recommend that you get a home pre-inspection. The home inspection will mostly address safety concerns and other basics. The inspector will make sure your ground fault indicators are working, the foundation isn't sinking, and the roof is in good shape, among other things. We also suggest getting a pest-inspection report. This inspection will look for structural pests and defects, like dry rot, termites, fungus, and other things that may impact a buyer's willingness to pay top dollar for your home.

We recommend getting a pre-inspection and a pest inspection before selling because it puts you in control of the process. You get to choose the vendors and deal with all the problems beforehand, so there are no headaches and surprises once a buyer is involved. It also reduces the negotiation time and the ability of the buyer to negotiate the price for a second time. Typically, when they get their inspection, you have no idea who they are going to use and the buyer often asks for everything in the inspection report to be fixed by the seller.

You can save yourself a lot of time and money by getting inspection reports up front and by taking care of those issues with a licensed contractor. If you have any questions about the process, or if you have real estate questions of any kind, give us a call or shoot us a quick email. We would love to help you out!