Termite damage - would you still buy the house?

2 years ago

I had an inspection done on a house I am buying. Upon inspection, three joists in the basement were found to have past termite damage. The sellers had a company in two years ago to remediate. What I am concerned about is the damage left behind. Three joists in a row have quite a bit of rot and I am concerned about their structural integrity. The house is located in the northeast which is not typically a termite part of the country, so all I have to go on are stories of how invasive they can be. Would you ask for repairs or pass on this house? I'm also wondering why all the boards in this basement are so dark. Do they just darken with age? I've never looked at a house this old. This house was built in 1950.

Featured Answer

User

2 years ago

Homechef just gave you fabulous advice.

I bought a house where the prior deal had fallen through because the potential buyer got spooked when their inspector found active termites.

The sellers paid to have the termites treated, and paid to have the wall torn open and repaired. They allowed us to watch all the repairs as they progressed, the contractor took everything back to clean/undamaged wood and did a really nice job on all the repairs.

We got second opinions on everything and were satisfied. In fact, I'm actually pretty grateful because I love the house so I'm thrilled the other potential buyers got spooked off. The pest control company does yearly inspections and we know we'll need to retreat in something like 8 years, and we know what to watch for in the meantime.

Every house has issues. Get some expert assistance so you can assess how serious this is or isn't, and go from there.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (7)

millworkman
2 years ago
"I had an inspection done on a house I am buying. Upon inspection, three joists in the basement were found to have past termite damage."

What did the inspector recommend about repair? Have you brought in a contractor or engineer to look at the issue? Will the house be priced accordingly if you need to do repairs? Tough for us to gauge as the NE covers a lot of COL areas and real estate markets.
lyfia
2 years ago
Yes I would still buy it, but first I would figure out what the fix entailed and the cost etc. Then I'd likely negotiate with the owner to lower the price because I'd want to be in control of who does the fix, but if you think the negotiations would work better asking them to repair I'd do so with an after it's done inspected again to make sure it was done satisfactorily.
Related Discussions
Weevils on Rhodies - Ortho Home Defense Max Termites CarpenterAnt
Q
Comments (13)
You are dead wrong in your supposition, wynsworld. The people you will talk to when calling the information hotline are in the business of helping people like you use their products properly, safely, effectively, and legally. They are one hundred percent willing to tell a caller that they MUST NOT use their product in a certain way because it may: damage the plant, not do the job the user intends, harm the user, harm non-target animals, harm the environment, or be illegal. Ortho has nothing to gain from people who get themselves into trouble by misusing their products and a great deal to lose. That number is the very first place you should go to for good information. Look on the label and call the number listed. If you have never done so, you might be surprised. I've called them many times over the years, mostly to see to what they had to say about certain off label uses. I've never had a sales job pulled on me, but have been given a great deal of good information....mostly in the form of "NO, you cannot use our Ortho product for that use." But plenty of times to explain how to safely use it for something that might not be listed on the label. Chemical companies spend multimillions of dollars in research in order to produce their products and the labels that are considered federally legal documents. They want their customer to be successful and will help you to that end. On the other hand, if someone wants to do something dangerous or even non-effective with their product, they'll tell you immediately that you cannot. I suspect that they will be happy to bless your use of this pesticide for your purpose, and why not take advantage of their insight? They have an awfully lot at stake that you will be satisfied with their pesticide and live to tell the story. ;-)
...See More
Sill Damage from Termites - Repair?
Q
Comments (2)
Gardenguy's idea are good, I guess he means a reciprocating saw? I don't know if this is a good DIY job though, it's major and structural, and must be done properly. Pressure treated's a good idea, and you should take action to kill any remaining colonies, get in the experts. No simple answer and you won't know the full extent of the damage til the walls come off.....but don't delay, and don't skimp. if the house is jacked up properly, problems should be minimal, and it's better to suffer a little now, than have major sags or collapse later. Don't take the lowest bid unless the person really knows their stuff - repair/renovation is 10 times harder than building new.
...See More
X-Post Repairing Termite Damage.
Q
Comments (1)
I can't answer your question, but boy, do I feel your pain. We live in the midwest over some old coalmines and have to be careful about everything we put in the ground. We had to get rid of all the wood mulch around our house. All the landscape companies assured us that termites wouldn't eat the "good" mulch. Well, they ate ours. If I planted a geranium in the ground termites tunnelled through the stem. They ate a 2X12 board in our garage wall. They ate through the drywall in the basement and DD came running up the stairs saying she could see movement in the holes in the walls. Freaked her out! I think ours must be mutants! After your home is treated, make sure you have a yearly inspection. That way you will be insurred by the insect control people for any additional problems. Since we got rid of all wood mulch around the foundation and the termite people drilled holes all around and filled them with some kind of termite killer, we haven't seen any more signs of them. Good luck!
...See More
Would you buy a log home?
Q
Comments (36)
mtn -- building would be the most desirable option -- if only a good lot of land would come up for sale! Then I just have to show my inlaws a bunch of pictures of sochi's gorgeous Canadian cabin. The absolute perfect lot (locationwise) JUST came up today - but heartbreakingly, I think it's a mistake listing. I believe the realtor meant to list non-waterfront land down the street (based on the property description which is identical for both new listings). I've already pinged my realtor about it though! Just to emphasize how perfect it is, just last week I actually paid the $6 to land registry for just this exact lot to find out who the owner is. I was contemplating writing him a letter (but hadn't moved on that yet). We have tromped around some other lots (leading to saga of nail through rubber boot in the middle of the wilderness), only one of which was acceptable (not swampy), but my husband felt it was too sloped. I felt it was just fine...I think it's hard to envision the lot for the trees sometimes. (This is my favorite lake, we've been looking at a dozen or so others as well). This post was edited by robotropolis on Mon, Jan 12, 15 at 15:13
...See More
Sigrid
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Carpenter ants can do damage, too. You want to get a quote from someone to assess the damage and give you a quote. Maybe you need to pay someone. We had some issues with our inspection and hired a chimney guy to send a camera up the chimneys. Then, we knew the extent of the issue (sufficient that the fireplaces were not usable, until fixed.) We also got quotes for lining the chimneys.
homechef59
2 years ago
No. I would not walk away.

First, arrange an inspection from a qualified pest control inspector to determine if there is any current activity.

Second, arrange for a structural engineer to inspect the damage. They will make determination if the structure is compromised.

Using professionals to ascertain the degree of damage and the soundness of the structure will tell you if you need to walk away, negotiate repairs or nothing else need be done.

Termites are not an all or nothing situation. Education and professional expertise are the keys to a good outcome.
kevin9408
2 years ago
Expensive money pit if you ask me. The sub floor and built up beams look newer than the floor joists by about 50 years. There is something weird about this house and think it was built on top the bones of a tear down or they used salvaged lumber for the floor joists because they look 100 years old.

You also don't know the condition of the other floor joists inside, but a pocket knife stuck into the others would have told the inspector the condition. If you can go back stick the other joists with a knife, and take a marble to set on the floors to see how bad everything is out of level. Something isn't right.
worthy
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
While homechef's advice is sound, I'd be inclined to save the inspection fees and move on.

As kevin9408 says, there's something off. It reminds me of cottages I looked at, only to see they were obviously built with re-cycled lumber.

Termite damage - would you still buy the house?

User

Comments (7)

millworkman

lyfia

Related Discussions

Sigrid

homechef59

kevin9408

worthy

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US