Richard was called to this home in Varsity Lakes because the client didn’t trust the report they were given. This report was from the real estate agent and had been prepared by an inspection company regularly used by the agent. That report had cleared the property of any concerns.
Richard conducted a thorough inspection that included the sub-floor and the roof spaces. These are difficult space that are sometimes hard to access. This might explain why other inspectors so often fail to check them. They’re also spaces that are vital to check, as we’ll see in this case study.
The worst of what Richard found was a termite nest in the sub-floor. This is both disastrous for the home owner and unforgivable for the previous inspector who didn’t report this. Images below.
Prior to finding the termite damage and the termite nest, Richard found damp in the sub-floor. This should always be reported. Damp contributes to building damage and (more importantly from Richard’s perspective) makes ideal conditions for termites. The combination of damp soil and a large mostly hidden space is a recipe for termites. The images below show what Richard initially found, a damp sub-floor and termite mudding leading up the wall.
This should have been reported by the previous inspector. It’s a mistake that will cost tens of thousands of dollars.
We have chosen this one as a case study because it contains a lot of elements that we commonly see in other jobs Richard does. eg:
The real estate agent had a report prepared by an inspection company they were familiar with. That report cleared the property of any termite activity.
We're not saying they were cowboys but let's just say they missed some obvious signs. This is very common. Richard is constantly finding signs of termites other inspectors missed.
A damp subfloor should always be a red flag for any property. Damp attracts termites. As you will find in this case study, Richard found a lot of termites.
When you put these factors together you have a time bomb waiting to wreak havoc. As we'll see in the photos below, this is exactly what happened. The home other is now up for some expensive repairs.