house damage not disclosed

tennessee. bought a house at foreclosure auction. not an as-is sale. damage was not disclosed at auction. requested a termite/moisture inspection which came back as sound as a rock. after closing found seals and base plate severly damaged from termite/moisture damage. house has no basement only a crawl space. had been temporarily fixed consisting of cinder blocks with 2x4's to hold up. uneven floors not noticeable at a walk through inspection. to cover up noticable damage inside the house, carpet was put over the worst room. other rooms have hardwood. estimate to repair is $24,000.00. what is our recourse?

[HomeGuru]

There is limited to no disclosure on a foreclosure sale therefore "Seller" is not liable. If areas were in accesssible, hidden, covered etc. at termite inspection then the inpectors are not liable either. Did you get a home inspecton?

No, we didn't have a home inspection. Neither did we crawl up under the house, since the termite inspector should have been under it doing a termite/moisture inspection. It is very visible. To my way of thinking if the termite inspection was in fact done, a blind inspector could have seen this damage and the props to hold it up. So, are you saying that we are going to have to fix this damage at our expense, even though someone has obviously known and not disclosed it? Does this not constitute some kind of fraud?

[HomeGuru]

The only claim you have is against the termite inspector for a negligent inspection.
Like I said, there is no disclosure required on a foreclosure sale and you failed to complete your due diligence by getting a home inspecton. There is inherent risks in buying foreclosure property and that risk would have been lessened a bit with a complete and professional home inspection.
If the termite company has deep pockets and/or errors and ommissions insurance you may be looking at getting some ssort of compensation. If not, then you overpaid for the property by $24K.
This is one good example of why every buyer needs a home inspection.