Don’t Close on a Home Sale Before First Requesting a Termite Inspection

Termite inspections are essential, especially when you’re closing on a house. Termite damage can far exceed home damage caused by tornadoes or floods, and homeowner insurance policies rarely cover it. Although a house may look charming from the outside, you can’t know the home’s true structural integrity without examining whether termites are gnawing at its foundations. The presence of termites would quickly change the nature of a home sale or purchase. The property’s seller would either need to fix the problem or lower the purchasing price to account for the damage accrued by the termite infestation. To confirm whether termites have infested your property or a home you’re interested in, reach out to the inspectors at Albert’s Pest Control.

When Are Termite Inspections Best?

All termite inspections performed by our technicians use the necessary forms for the inspection and charge reasonable prices for their work. We offer our inspection services for various real estate scenarios, helping buyers, lenders, and banks decide on final sales and financing. For example, our termite inspections have helped individuals when:

• Engaging in Conventional Lending
• Refinancing a Home
• Determining a Home’s Value
• Performing Final House Inspections Before Purchase
• Applying for FHA, VA & RD Loans
• And More

Be On the Lookout for Signs of Termites!

While there are subtle ways exterminators can identify the types of termites, where they’re most active, and their source, there are ways you can identify the presence of these invasive pests yourself. If you suspect you are contending with a termite inspection, be aware of unique signs like:

• Mud Tubes – Termites create mud tubes to travel between their nests and food sources, often appearing along walls, foundations, or crawl spaces.
• Termite Leavings – Check around your home for things like discarded wings or termite droppings, known as frass. Frass resembles small wood pellets or sawdust. Finding either frass or wings near wood structures may suggest a nearby infestation.
• Wood Damage – If you notice wood that’s rotting, hollow-sounding, or visibly damaged with what appears to be small holes, this can indicate termite activity.
• Spongy Floors – Do your floors seem spongy, uneven or squishy? Be careful! Termites are likely eating and damaging the wood under your floor’s surface.
• Cracked & Warped Walls – If termites eat away at your home’s foundation and supports, you may notice signs of structural damage, like cracks in your walls and ceiling.

How Can You Prepare for an Inspection?

Albert’s Pest Control’s skilled team of termite exterminators can provide the thorough inspections your home requires to identify all potential problem areas. Our pest control team carefully checks areas where termites tend to be found, such as the perimeter of your home, around the foundation, in your basement or crawlspace, etc. However, before we arrive at your property, there are a few things you can do to prepare for your upcoming termite inspection:

• Provide Access to Walls, Cabinets, etc. – Remove any obstructions around the walls of your home (exterior and interior). Also, clear out cabinets and areas around and under sinks, toilets, and other plumbing fixtures.
• Identify Areas of Excessive Moisture – An inspector will first check these areas because termites are attracted to areas with the most moisture accumulation. Identify the areas of your home most likely to accumulate moisture, such as basements, crawlspaces, or around plumbing fixtures.
• Offer Relevant Information – Have mud tubes formed along your basement walls? Are there areas of your floor that feel squishy or spongey? Alert your inspector to any issues you’ve noticed to help expedite the identification of a termite infestation.

Do You Qualify for a Free Termite Inspection?

Albert’s Termite & Pest Control offers free inspections and quotes for individuals who already have a termite infestation.

Think You’re Safe from Termites? Think Again!

Myth: You only find termites in the South.
Fact: While most of the 41 species of termites live in the southeastern United States, Alaska is the only state where termites have not been found.

Myth: A brick house on a concrete slab is safe from termites.
Fact: Termites can construct tunnels through cracks in concrete. Thus, a concrete slab does not eliminate wood-to-ground contact. Because most homes have a wood frame, termites can work their way in no matter how a house is separated from the soil.

Myth: Termites die or are removed when builders clear forests to make room for new development.
Fact: Most termites nest underground. When termite colonies lose their food supply to developers, they seek out new food sources – usually the wood from the newly developed homes.

Schedule Your Termite Inspection Today

For reliable termite inspections in Peoria, Washington, Dunlap, Pekin, East Peoria, Metamora, Germantown Hills, Morton, or the rest of the Tri-County area, contact Albert’s Pest Control today. We are Central Illinois’ go-to exterminators for managing termites, roaches, mice, ants and more. To learn more about our pest control services, call 309-685-1464 or complete an online form.