Recover damages after sale of home

[Souix]

Here is clarification between carp ants, termites and their treatment:

http://www.umass.edu/bmatwt/publications/articles/controlling_ants_termites.html

 

[HomeGuru]

The point that I ws trying to make was that Erick2003 did not know what he was talking about. I know termites. I used to be one in a previous life. Then decided that being a shark is better.

 

[Souix]

The point that I ws trying to make was that Erick2003 did not know what he was talking about. I know termites. I used to be one in a previous life. Then decided that being a shark is better.

***And a very clever one at that....lol....well now Erik can read that site and learn what a termite is and what a carpenter ant is****

 

[HomeGuru]

Yes, indeed and thanks for sharing.

 

[justpassingthru]

For all you folks who go to great length in your disclaimers that you are not attorneys I have to chuckle at your attempts at being entomologists...What no disclaimers??

Okay, since I have the licences and the certifications and the educational requirements under my belt to speak on this topic I will attempt to offer my two cents worth to this funny thread.

Wood destroying insect inspectors are obligated to inspect for evidence of the following insects: 1) Termites (all species) 2) Carpenter Ants 3) Wood infesting beetles 4) Carpenter Bees.
Period. We do not inspect for rats, roaches, ants, etc., and we are not required to. Probably the worst cussing I ever received from a realtor is when I had the "audacity" to mention a severe flea problem in the comments section of my written report while performing a Wood destroying insect inspection for a real estate closing. I was accused of trying to drum up business for a flea treatment as sour grapes for not finding termites.....yeah right lady...geesh! I felt I had an obligation to report what was so painfully obvious. The new family may have small children for God's sake. Realtors really put the screws to inspectors...they pretty well dictate how when and what we will report...I DARE ANY OF YOU REALTORS TO DISPUTE THIS. If you are not yourself guilty of it then you most certainly well know 10 who are so no unwarranted guff please. Anyway back to the point here....
You will get no where complaining about the rats...the inspector was not hired to look for rats and would have probably had the Realtors boot in his butt if he dared do so anyway.

Now the termites.....it IS possible that two different species of termites are present. The treatment described for the garage indicates the presence of subterranean termites. The tenting of the house indicates the presence of drywood termites as some of you were correct in posting. Erik you need to stick with law...or whatever it is you do...okay bud

Now what the original poster needs to do is this.....go find your closing documents...find the termite report...you signed it at closing...did you read it??????????????????? Read it! It was prepared specifically for YOU in the first place. Next look for the treatment contract...yes it should be there too. It should explain your warranty, it will indicate the actual insects treated...it will include a detailed graph of the structures with the areas of infestation clearly marked along with the areas of visible damage from the little wood destroying buggers (your written report includes all of this info too!). You should find a whole wealth of documents about what your termite inspector did. If you don't have these documents then somebody is in big trouble. And I dare say it would be the Realtor.

Don't assume your termite inspector and the treatment company did a half a** job until you get the paperwork out and take the time to understand what was or was not done. Pest control professionals do not obtain their certifications from cracker jacks or by sending in 3 box tops of wheaties. Most of us have ALL of our natural teeth and and I have yet to met one in my industry married to his/her sibling. You bought the house right????? Sounds like you let someone else do all the being bothered with the little formalities such as worrying about termites. Shame on you. Now you are stuck with a pile of rat poop and a house and garage that may or may not have been treated for what may or may not be drywood termites or subterranean termites. You're the clueless one but it's all the termite guys fault???? Don't rush to judgement. Get your facts straight and then proceed if necessary and if the termite guy screwed up then by all means let him know about it. Just don't mention the rat. The least of your worries right now is the rat.

OH! By the way........treatment warranties are NEVER given to the mortgage company....warranties are provided to the CONSUMER. That would be you.

 

[Souix]

Probably the worst cussing I ever received from a realtor is when I had the "audacity" to mention a severe flea problem in the comments section of my written report while performing a Wood destroying insect inspection for a real estate closing. I was accused of trying to drum up business for a flea treatment as sour grapes for not finding termites.....yeah right lady...geesh! I felt I had an obligation to report what was so painfully obvious. The new family may have small children for God's sake. Realtors really put the screws to inspectors...they pretty well dictate how when and what we will report...I DARE ANY OF YOU REALTORS TO DISPUTE THIS. If you are not yourself guilty of it then you most certainly well know 10 who are so no unwarranted guff please.


***Gee whiz Mr. Pest Inspector, do I know you? Have you done business with all the realtors in my state? There must be at least 12,000 of us in Oregon alone. Can you honestly say that you have met all of us and done inspections on every single home we have sold? Can you honestly say that we are all alike even when you have never met us? In my 20 years of selling real estate I have only met one unscrupulous realtor who called my pest inspector and had the audaciity to ask them to change the report. Thankfully, she is no longer in the business. I agree that there is good and bad in every profession, but making generalities like you have, is just plain ignorant.

BTW you can check out a poster's profile by clicking on the profile button of their post. Eric is not an attorney. This forum could probably use a pest inspector's advice, but please don't start attacking the professional people that post here. I think that if we all try to be civil, we can actually learn from each other, thats in the rules anyway.

 

[justpassingthru]

Somehow I just knew that would be the response. To answer your question I will say No, I have not been in direct contact with every Realtor in the nation. By the same token the posters on this board have not had contact with all pest professionals in the nation but I see the same negative generalities lumping us in the same group.

I can not make statements about Realtors as a whole and I really didn't do that intentionally. I made my statements about the realtors I deal with directly every day. Because the city I live in is quite large and the local economy has always been quite good home sales are always booming. As a result I meet with and speak with and deal with many agents on a daily basis. My firm is large therefore I am not only dealing with my own inspections I have to answer for all the inspectors licensed under me. My point here is I am in contact with realtors from the time I get up until the time I go to bed. Not all realtors are ruthless and unethical but the percentage that I deal with directly would never be hired by me to sell a dog house for me. Maybe yours is a good city and you all are of high moral caliber. To that I can only say thank God a place actually exists where pest inspectors aren't persecuted for simply doing their job.

Some pest control companies are not up to par in the ethics department as well. I could tell you stories that would curl your hair. I can spot a "dead bug doug" a mile away. Unfortunately the consumer can't. Maybe if I haven't made everyone mad at me I can offer some advice in this area?

You've pointed out to me that you are a highly moral Realtor well let me introduce myself, I'm a highly moral pest inspector. Perhaps our combined knowledge can do some good here on this board? Our industries, whether we like it or not, are thrust upon each other. If anything discussed here can make a difference for even one pest control company one real estate agent or one buyer then I say it has been worth it.

You folks appear to be quite intelligent and that's why I think I took the time to post. I see a lot of misperception about the inspection process in the home buying arena. If there is anything I can offer that could be of some help I'm happy to do it.

One of my best friends is a real estate agen so no, I don't think ALL Realtors are scoundrels. I apologize profusely if you feel I was attacking your profession.

 

[Souix]

Somehow I just knew that would be the response. To answer your question I will say No, I have not been in direct contact with every Realtor in the nation. By the same token the posters on this board have not had contact with all pest professionals in the nation but I see the same negative generalities lumping us in the same group.

I can not make statements about Realtors as a whole and I really didn't do that intentionally. I made my statements about the realtors I deal with directly every day. Because the city I live in is quite large and the local economy has always been quite good home sales are always booming. As a result I meet with and speak with and deal with many agents on a daily basis. My firm is large therefore I am not only dealing with my own inspections I have to answer for all the inspectors licensed under me. My point here is I am in contact with realtors from the time I get up until the time I go to bed. Not all realtors are ruthless and unethical but the percentage that I deal with directly would never be hired by me to sell a dog house for me. Maybe yours is a good city and you all are of high moral caliber. To that I can only say thank God a place actually exists where pest inspectors aren't persecuted for simply doing their job.

Some pest control companies are not up to par in the ethics department as well. I could tell you stories that would curl your hair. I can spot a "dead bug doug" a mile away. Unfortunately the consumer can't. Maybe if I haven't made everyone mad at me I can offer some advice in this area?

You've pointed out to me that you are a highly moral Realtor well let me introduce myself, I'm a highly moral pest inspector. Perhaps our combined knowledge can do some good here on this board? Our industries, whether we like it or not, are thrust upon each other. If anything discussed here can make a difference for even one pest control company one real estate agent or one buyer then I say it has been worth it.

You folks appear to be quite intelligent and that's why I think I took the time to post. I see a lot of misperception about the inspection process in the home buying arena. If there is anything I can offer that could be of some help I'm happy to do it.

One of my best friends is a real estate agen so no, I don't think ALL Realtors are scoundrels. I apologize profusely if you feel I was attacking your profession.

***Ok, I just hope you don't offer anymore generalities. Like I said every profession has their good and bad......and attorneys have gotten a bad rap for ages. Thing is, once someone needs one they're not so bad anymore.

I have the utmost respect for the pest inspectors I use. Who else is going to crawl around under a house with a migraine headache because this is the last day of a buyer's contingency period?

I actually like pest inspectors and/or home inspectors, they tend to keep me out of trouble. So I look forward to hearing more from you on these subjects.***

 

[Erik2003]

Thanks for the link Souix. It is very informative. I seem to have put myself in a situation where I need to clarify who I am not. I am not, nor do I have any institutional training as: an attorney, real-estate agent, exterminator, or inspector. I am a product design engineer who enjoys real estate, law, home improvement and auto restoration. I have more to learn than I have to offer. The wood destroying insect issue just happens to be an area that I’ve learned a lot about, the hard way. I only intended to provide some of my personal experience insight. (Yeah, yeah, I know…”The road to Hell is paved with good intensions”.)

Yours,
Svend

 

[justpassingthru]

***Ok, I just hope you don't offer anymore generalities.

****Fair Enough

I have the utmost respect for the pest inspectors I use. Who else is going to crawl around under a house with a migraine headache because this is the last day of a buyer's contingency period?

****Or because all are a assembled at the closing table and the realtor forgot to order the inspection

I actually like pest inspectors and/or home inspectors, they tend to keep me out of trouble.

****Sounds as if you would prefer the deal go south because of truthful inspection reporting rather than have things fluffed over on the report leaving the buyer to discover otherwise after the closing. On these unahappy occasions the inspector and the realtor will meet again in court. Unfortunately I have had many experiences where both the inspector (from another company of course) and the realtor are willing to risk it.

So I look forward to hearing more from you on these subjects.***

****And I look forward to the opportunity to contribute.

 

[HomeGuru]

Interesting dialogue.

 

[Souix]

Interesting dialogue.

***Interesting thread***

 

[HomeGuru]

Interesting website.