Don;t buy a home without a pest inspection first!.
For most potential buyers, a home inspection is a given prior to purchase. What about a pest inspection? Do you need that before you sign a contract to buy a house? Yes you do!
A state-licensed professional conducts pest inspections, also known as termite inspections. The inspector visually checks all accessible areas in a home, including crawl spaces, attics, and exteriors for evidence of:
• Wood-destroying insects (termites, carpenter ants, wood-boring beetles) and fungal rot.
• Evidence of previous infestations, such as damaged wood, dead insects, wings, and “termite tubes” in the wood.
• Conditions favorable to pests, such as plumbing leaks, earth-to-wood contact, and standing water.
Most states do not require a pest inspection by law before the sale of property, but a majority of mortgage lenders do. Many buyers require a termite contingency, allowing them to withdraw from the purchase in the event extreme damage is discovered.
Also, if you’re selling a home, it may be advantageous to get a pest inspection before placing the home on the market to make the property more attractive to potential buyers. Whether you’re a buyer or seller, here are some solid reasons to get a pest inspection:
Protect your investment
Call Peter Young for your Asheville pest inspection.
Buying a home is a big investment. In fact, for many people it’s the biggest purchase they’ll ever make. Home ownership and upkeep go hand in hand. You wouldn’t live in a home with a leaky roof, right? Extensive and expensive damage to the structure would decrease the home’s value. The same is true with common household pests. Termites, carpenter ants, wood-boring beetles, rodents, and other pests can do severe damage to a home. These kinds of pests are not easy to spot by untrained eyes. It’s better to have a professional pest inspection service give the house a shakedown before you sign that contract.
Protect your health
It’s not just your money at stake from pests in a home; your health may be at risk. Flies, roaches, mosquitoes, fleas, mites, rodents, and bed bugs can be sources of disease. Out here in Western North Carolina, it’s not uncommon for homes to have bats, and that could mean bat bugs. Where there are bats there is guano, which can carry disease. Speaking of disease-causing droppings, there are a number of health problems associated with rodent feces. So if a house has rodents, you definitely need to know that up front.
Peace of mind with an Asheville pest inspection
Sleep more soundly with a pest inspection.
There’s a definite advantage to sleeping at night without the sound of tiny mouse feet on the kitchen floor! Knowing that your home is free of rodents and aggressive, destructive insects, as well as unpleasant surprises in the form of huge repair bills helps you sleep more soundly at night.
So before you sign on the dotted line for a house be sure that both a physical home inspection and pest inspection are included in the purchase contract. Then if the inspections reveal serious problems, you can cancel the purchase of the property. Or if the inspection reveals the presence of pests but not significant damage, you can negotiate with the seller to adjust the home price to reflect the cost of pest extermination or ask the seller to take care of it before arranging the closing.
For more information about pest inspections, please check out this article from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Know before you buy!
Asheville home inspector Peter Young provides complete home inspection services in Asheville and surrounding areas. Call Peter today at 828-808-4980 to arrange a home inspection or to set up your Asheville pest inspection.
