I am in awe of the insect world. In my past life in Kansas, termites, termite inspections and the occasional termite repair were transactional inconveniences which were most commonly a call to the seller with the bad news. A mud run on the foundation or an infested fence post near the house. Occasionally there might be damage to a porch stoop, but I can't remember ever having repairs that couldn't be completed for $500.

Meanwhile, back in Hawaii...

I will be marketing a REO property which recently came under my tutelage. I had the opportunity to spend some time at the property today with the Pest Control company, and while we surveyed the damage, he told me tales of the Formosa Subterranean Termite. Again... we're not in Kansas anymore!

As the bids are being prepared, the portion of the bids directly attributable to the damage by this wily Queen and her average 3 million loyal subjects looks to be in the area of $25,000 to $30,000. That will be to repair the best guess of damage. The bid will also have a time and material clause for damage which could only be discovered after the siding and door jams are removed and the wall studs can be inspected. The cost could go way up from there. 

Add to that the additional expense of removing and repairing porch overhangs, window and trim boards as well as interior sheet rock and repainting the complete interior and exterior... and I'm sure you can see how expensive the overall repairs will be. The cost to treat a home on precautionary note would be less than a thousand dollars and the cost of an inspection would be free in some cases, or minimal in the diligence stage of purchase agreement. 

When I asked the pest control company how this house would rate on a scale of 1 to 10 on infestations they have had experience with he thought it about a 5. That was when I was really a believer! My broker told me that under the proper circumstances, a home can be essentially consumed by a colony in a years time. Granted, there would be signs during that year, but in a rental situation or a part time 2nd home, you might make the discovery much later than you wished you had. 

So today will be the day and the story I tell when I'm working with the purchaser who is debating whether or not they should get a termite inspection. When a tenant calls to say they noticed some mud in the corner of the room of one of my rentals, I will remember the paper thin shell of the siding on this home and immediately call a pest company to come and make an inspection. This will be the experience I recall when I am listing a home and recommend to the seller that we get the termite inspection at the time of listing, instead of waiting for escrow only to discover it later. 

I like to think this might save someone from an unanticipated expense of termites. Maybe an inspection before they purchase or a call to an inspector in the home they live in at an early stage versus a late stage. I always knew that termites were voracious and once they appeared they needed to be eradicated, but I learned today the exponential nature of this species. The colonies can be as much greater than the average colonies and the Queen can be 50 feet below the surface and quite a distance laterally from the affected property. The loyal subjects do not sleep... they just fill their stomachs with wood,take it to the nest like a little wheelbarrow with legs, empty their wheelbarrow to provide food for the nest and then repeat the process 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The good news is that I don't have any excuse now to underestimate them and it is one of my few free lessons that I've learned in Real Estate. So that is a good thing!