New home inspection found evidence of termites! Anyone deal with this?

[Runningmom80]

There were definitely "mud tubes" so now we have a pest inspection to inspect to see if there is active infestation and to evaluate the damage 

We are prepared to walk if the damage is extensive.

 

Just curious if anyone else has experienced this and what you did.  It's a total bummer, as we LOVE the house, but I'm not going to be emotional about it if it's a bad buy. 

[almondbutterandjelly]

In Texas, termites are common and not that big a deal.  If it hasn't been done before, they will tent the house and treat.  Then I guess if much is damaged, you would just replace it (but it might not be a huge amount of damage).  Then you have the termite people come out once a year for an annual inspection.  I think tenting is around $1000, and you could probably make the seller pay for it.  The annual inspection is around $100.  

YMMV

 

[Runningmom80]

5 minutes ago, perkybunch said:

In Texas, termites are common and not that big a deal.  If it hasn't been done before, they will tent the house and treat.  Then I guess if much is damaged, you would just replace it (but it might not be a huge amount of damage).  Then you have the termite people come out once a year for an annual inspection.  I think tenting is around $1000, and you could probably make the seller pay for it.  The annual inspection is around $100.  

YMMV

 

 

We would definitely have the seller pay. I’m in the Midwest and it’s not all that common so naturally it’s making me anxious!

[sassenach]

What’s your realtor say? I would be more concerned about the damage than the treatment. Treatment is easy and should be completed before the sale. The damage could range from little to devastating. I would want an intense inspection to look for damage. 

[ksr5377]

Our first house had termites and the seller paid for treatment before we purchased. It came with a warranty which we did have to use about a year later and then we never had signs of termites again in the 10 years we stayed there.  The seller had often stacked piles of firewood against the house which we really think was the issue. We made sure not to have easy access for them.

[Runningmom80]

1 hour ago, sassenach said:

What’s your realtor say? I would be more concerned about the damage than the treatment. Treatment is easy and should be completed before the sale. The damage could range from little to devastating. I would want an intense inspection to look for damage. 

 

The realtor doubts that it’s anything significant. He says they have to be in there for years to do significant damages. (in most cases, he recognizes that there’s always a chance that this isn’t typical)

Both he and my husband are a lot calmer saying wait for the pest inspection and we’ll have the sellers pay for what needs to be done. I’m the one imagining the house collapsing in 5 years from undetected damages. (Naturally)

[popmom]

We just had our house treated for termites. It was way less expensive than I thought it would be. The cost included the bond or warranty. And it is a "treat and repair" bond--which is important. Lots of companies will sell you a bond/warranty, but many are only to retreat. The homeowner would have to pay for any damage repairs. Ask if the warranty is retreat only or treat and repair. 

[gardenmom5]

you really can't know the extent unless you open the walls.

2dd and dsil did walk on a house because  the seller demanded they close an hour  (an HOUR) before their schedule termite inspection . . .

[Sara in AZ]

Several years ago we discovered termites in the house we had just purchased and in the house we were preparing to sell at the exact same time. It was annoying, but really not a big deal. I think it was maybe $1500 for each house for the treatment. (Not tents here, just the drilling mentioned up thread.) We saw signs of them again in our current house about a year later and had them retreat (free under the warranty) and everything has looked good for several years now. Our realtor said there are two kinds of houses: Those that have termites and those that are going to get termites....

[Runningmom80]

4 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

you really can't know the extent unless you open the walls.

2dd and dsil did walk on a house because  the seller demanded they close an hour  (an HOUR) before their schedule termite inspection . . .

 

Oh geez! That’s pretty ridiculous of the sellers.

[Runningmom80]

4 hours ago, Sara in AZ said:

Several years ago we discovered termites in the house we had just purchased and in the house we were preparing to sell at the exact same time. It was annoying, but really not a big deal. I think it was maybe $1500 for each house for the treatment. (Not tents here, just the drilling mentioned up thread.) We saw signs of them again in our current house about a year later and had them retreat (free under the warranty) and everything has looked good for several years now. Our realtor said there are two kinds of houses: Those that have termites and those that are going to get termites....

 

 

Ive read that about houses in the southwest, they all get them eventually.

[kbutton]

Midwest here too--super common.

They tend to come in one area and then fan out. You can have damage that doesn't show up until later--popped nailheads in an area near mud tubes can often mean a wall will be full of mud. You can read up on what attracts termites, and sometimes it's things like old plumbing left in a wall after a remodel, etc. So, if you know that kind of stuff is showing around where the mud tubes are, it can give you clues to where damage will be. If there are hardwood floors, it's possible to have had the termites eat the underside of the boards, and a couple of years from now, the hollowed out sections will become evident, so keep that in mind. It's not unusual to actually see damage AFTER the darn things are gone for good (if you've had treatment). 

My biggest concerns would be if they are in a sill plate or something like that. If there is any sign of them going through one, I would want to know and have things fixed before buying.

[Scarlett]

One thing I would want to know is when was the property last sold.  And how many times has it been sold.  Because generally termite inspections and treatments happen when a house sells. If he house has  been sitting empty or neglected for years....yeah termites might could have caused serious damage.

We opened up a lot of walls on our house and found a fair amount of damage.....it looks really scary but really not so much.  We had to replace some sheetrock under some old paneling....but nothing significant.

[HS Mom in NC]

Around here it's not IF you get termites, it's WHEN you get them.

[Carol in Cal.]

The tenting is for the kind the swarm annually, and those are pretty slow to cause damage.

But the mud tube ones have nests in the ground, and use the tube they build for transportation to their food.  They cause damage much more quickly, and tenting only kills the ones that happen to be feeding at the time of the tenting.  That is why the way to get rid of them is to inject poison into the soil around your foundation so that it kills them when they try to enter the area.  

Subsequently you want to get rid of the tubes (so you can see if new ones form) and repair any damaged wood.  Sometimes this involves pulling off wallboard and such.  

Prevention is also helpful.  When we got them, it was because we had a dead tree removed from right next to the house, and there were roots left.  The termites were drawn to those and eventually came into the house from there.  

Personally I avoid planting veggies near foundation walls if I know they have been treated.  I figure if I”m going to grow organic food, termite poison is not something I want in the soil where they grow, and also, I don’t want to disturb the soil and maybe mess with the poison barrier, which I want to be tenacious and prevent new infestations for a long time.