Termites! A Sellers Nightmare.


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  Friday 18th October, 2019
  Author: Shannon Grohs
  Categories: Pest Control
  Topic(s): Termites, selling homes, buying homes

Termites, they are most sellers nightmare, imagine finally getting an offer on your home that you are happy with. And then to have a termite inspection and termite activity is found, no matter how minimal the activity most people feel it means “End of Sale”.

But this is not always the case, there are several things as a homeowner you need to consider if your home is found to have termites. Most people rush to the phone book and look up the local pest controller to get them to treat the home that afternoon, that is not always the best course of action. Choosing a pest control company to deal with your termite issues is a long term relationship.

It can take several months to deal with an active termite infestation and pest controllers will need to conduct annual inspections to ensure your termite treatment is still 100% effective up to the life of the chemical and then re-treatments may be required. Therefore in a case where you are selling your home it is best that the purchasers choose who they want to deal with long term. By allowing the purchasers to engage the contractor themselves it becomes their responsibility if the contractors work isn’t up to scratch and they aren’t happy with the result, not yourself as the middle man.


Another reason it is best that the purchasers engage the contractor is that many termite treatments require changes to be made to the home. This can be as minimal as removing a garden bed to as extreme as drilling holes in concrete or removing pavers. When a home is placed under a contract of sale the expectation is that no changes are made to the home before handover. Therefore any changes that occur to the home due to a termite treatment need to be agreed to by the purchaser and be completed to the expectations of the purchaser.

Considering your Options!

When considering your options as the seller of the home it is imperative you take these two things into account. In many cases your best option is to conduct some research on how much it would cost to treat for termites and repair the damage in your home. Once you are well informed with these figures you are then in a position to negotiate with the purchaser of your home. If they are still willing to purchase the home, the best outcome for both of you may be to negotiate a reduced price for the home taking into consideration the cost to treat and repair the current damage.

If for some reason your sale does fall through then you can consider treatment options to deal with the termites and once they are eradicated place the home back on the market making sure your real estate agent is up front regarding the termite issue.

All pest controllers will provide a certificate of treatment for installing a termite barrier and they would usually place a sticker in the metre box for pest controllers and potential purchasers to see. Therefore, it is critical that your real estate agent is upfront with purchasers making them aware that termites had been an issue at the property and that they have been treated and are no longer active at the property.

This information being passed onto the purchasers before they ask is critical as it immediately puts any concerns around why the property was treated at rest. It also provides the purchasers with the opportunity to discuss the treatment and any on going maintenance required to ensure they dont have any issues in the future. As always, Honesty is the best policy.

DONT PANIC!

In Summary, if you are selling a home that has termite activity present, DONT PANIC! Stop and think through the situation and what you need to achieve. Then obtain some advice from a qualified pest controller about your property specifically, making sure you advise them that your home is “under offer”.

For Information on Treating Termites Please Click Here

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