Alicia64 Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 I'm the person who was dealing w/ a difficult landlord who wants me to aerate and seed her lawn. We also pay to have a quarterly pest control -- because I have a spider phobia -- and they do a crawl space check each year looking for termites. The guy didn't see termites, but he did find "termite shoots." He also found eleven racoons. Apparently a small screen under our front porch was missing and that's how they got in. She can try to blame us, I guess, but I know that she had the front porch rebuilt when she still lived here. We've never been under our front porch so we didn't knock the screen out. Anyway, it's $400 to remove the racoons and $45 to replace the screen. I'm sure she'll be thrilled to get this email from me. . . Alley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Ugh. But that's part of being a landlord. Just stick to the facts, and let her know what she needs to know so she can fix it. She's lucky that you have a pest control guy to check things out - otherwise she might never have known about the termite signs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alicia64 Posted January 9, 2014 Author Share Posted January 9, 2014 Ugh. But that's part of being a landlord. Just stick to the facts, and let her know what she needs to know so she can fix it. She's lucky that you have a pest control guy to check things out - otherwise she might never have known about the termite signs. For some reason, even though she acts like this home was her baby. . . and I think it was. . . they don't want to sink money into fixes/repairs. They want to sell it. And I can just see them trying to get by without fixing the signs of termites -- hoping they'll squeeze by the problem. (I just mean that I think it's unethical to sell a home w problems and not fix them up first. I would never sell my problems to an unsuspecting buyer.) Oh well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 The inspection will show the termite issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Augh! No fun. You may already know, but please be very careful about the raccoons. They often carry a specific kind of parasite that is particularly nasty. Once the parasite gets hold there's no known cure, and it is deadly. The eggs are very hardy and can last several years in outdoor conditions. Not even bleach kills them. I would be sure the exterminator takes the proper precautions to do the job properly. Raccoons are wicked smart, so watch for them finding their way back... http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baylisascaris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 I would also thing the landlord is responsible for the payment. My head is spinning imagining the damage 11 of those critters could do to a home. They are pretty icky, and around here can have rabies in addition to their other icks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 He also found eleven racoons. Apparently a small screen under our front porch was missing and that's how they got in. She can try to blame us, I guess, but I know that she had the front porch rebuilt when she still lived here. We've never been under our front porch so we didn't knock the screen out. Anyway, it's $400 to remove the racoons and $45 to replace the screen. This is the landlord's financial responsibility. Don't pay for it, not even up front, for her. This is a human health issue. She needs to deal with today, not next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bethben Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Raccoons got into my home growing up through the chimney and decided to live in our basement while we were on vacation. My dad found out about their presence only after he discovered fleas growing in his bedroom shag carpet. Beth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Rumor has it, they don't like ammonia and the old wives tale was to soak a rag in ammonia and throw it in the crawl space and they would leave. In your case, I think I would throw it in there AFTER they are removed, just to make it less hospitable if they decide to come back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Alyssa* Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 :grouphug: We have raccoons occupying our attic right now. They are a pain in the behind to get rid of! We sealed off one area they were coming in after they had exited for the night, but they managed to tear apart another area to get back in. (We looked for babies, but didn't see any, unless they are super tucked away.) This part is more difficult to truly fix, so until we have time to get to it, they are living in our attic. :thumbdown: They are also taking up space in a couple of my neighbors homes. They are an absolute menace!If you are renting, I'd make sure your landlord takes care of all the problems. I don't understand why she'd want you to do anything with her lawn, let alone pest problems like termites and raccoons. :huh: Unless you had some sort of agreement, that is all her responsibility. I wouldn't feel bad telling her about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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