Should you get a second building and pest inspection when buying a property?
It is universally known that a home or property is one of the biggest investments of most people's lives. In the case of a Parkwood property that we were called to last week, the purchaser has had to deal with a terrible reality as a result of a shoddy building and pest inspection. We were equally terrified to find infested and active termites throughout the home and property. The infestation had obviously been growing for some time and in plain sight to our expert inspector.
Unfortunately for the seller, they are now faced with a damage bill in excess of approximately $100,000. The extent of the infestation and damage even amazed our inspector despite years of experience and thousands of inspections carried out.
When we were called to quote on a barrier system to "protect" this home from termites, our inspector easily found:
- Damage to the skirting visible in the garage
- Skirting in the dining room visually damaged
- Signs of prior damage in the fence line from prior infestation
- Mudding as a sign of live activity on a tree in the yard
- Signs of damage in a bathroom wall and a "sub-nest" in the vanity
- A live infestation in a sleeper retaining wall
It sounds quite dramatic and it's actually far worse. At these points of concern we found that the garage bracing and studs including supporting beams heavily damaged and in need of replacement. In the bathroom where the vanity had a "sub-nest" the infestation was actually found to extend into the wall behind the shower and has required the complete removal of the shower and wall to fix the damage. In the dining room, the repairs will require replacement of bracing studs, skirting and plasterboard in the dining room.
This is after we have completed our work to rid the home and property of termites and install a barrier system.
We caution all property buyers to choose your pest and building inspection company with care or seek a second opinion. The extra $200 to $300 might be the saving grace of $100,000 damage, inconvenience and lots of heart-ache.
CTS Termite and Pest Control have completed over 10,000 building and pest inspections as a local, highly professional and trusted business servicing the Gold Coast.
