A termite report for a home sale is a Branch 3 inspection written on the Board's form. Section 1 lists active infestation or damage, Section 2 lists conditions that could lead to infestation, and a further inspection entry means an area could not be reached. Read it with the agent, and get any recommended work in writing.
Key takeaways
- A termite report is a Branch 3 inspection written on the Board's form. It is not a warranty and not a repair order.
- Section 1 lists active infestation or damage, and Section 2 lists conditions that could lead to infestation.
- A further inspection entry means an area could not be reached, which is a gap in the report, not a clean result.
- The purchase contract decides who pays for recommended work, not the report.
- Read the report line by line and ask the licensee what each finding means before the deal moves forward.
What is a termite report in a home sale?
A termite report in a home sale is a wood-destroying organism inspection by a Branch 3 licensee. It is written on the Board's form and records what the inspector found, and what could not be reached, on the day of the visit. It is a record of one day, not a promise.
Buyers and sellers in Manteca often meet this document during escrow, and agents frequently ask for it early. It is a snapshot of the property on one day, from one inspector, and it reports on wood-destroying organisms, mainly termites.
The report is a statement of findings. It is not a warranty that the house is free of termites, and it does not promise that a later inspection will agree with it. A careful buyer treats the report as the start of a conversation about the property, not the end of the question.
The form is set by the Board, so its layout is fixed. That makes one report comparable with another. Learn the layout once and reading any report becomes faster, including the parts that matter for a sale.
Read the access notes before the conclusions. The inspector's notes on what was and was not visible matter as much as the findings, because a clean conclusion means little for an area nobody could see.
What do Section 1 and Section 2 mean?
Section 1 lists active infestation or damage found at the time of inspection. Section 2 lists conditions that could lead to infestation without showing that one exists. The two are read differently, and a buyer should not treat a Section 2 note as proof of damage.
The distinction matters in a sale. An item under Section 1 is evidence of an active infestation or damage that the inspector saw. An item under Section 2 is a conditions note, a warning that the setup of the property makes an infestation more likely. It is not proof that one is there.
Read both sections in full. A Section 1 finding describes what was seen, and the report should say where and how much. A Section 2 entry can be just as useful, because it names the conditions the next owner will have to manage, even where no damage was visible.
Ask the inspector to point to each finding on the property if you can. A line on paper is easier to understand once you have seen the spot it describes.
What does a further inspection entry mean?
A further inspection entry means the inspector could not reach an area, so the report cannot say whether that area is clear. It is a gap in the report, and it should be followed up before the sale is treated as settled.
Some parts of a house are hard to see: a crawlspace with little clearance, a blocked attic hatch, a room with a locked door, or a wall that was finished over. When the inspector cannot get to one, the report says so, and that is the honest outcome of the visit.
A further inspection entry is not a finding of damage, and it is not a clean bill either. It is a question the report leaves open. The useful response is to ask what the access problem was, who can give access, and whether the area can be inspected before the deal closes.
Access is often a matter of arranging a time with the seller and the occupants. Start that request early, since waiting for access can hold up the timeline.
Who pays for the work a report calls for?
The report records findings and recommendations. The purchase contract and the negotiation decide who handles any work, when it happens and at whose cost. This guide does not state a general rule, because the answer depends on the contract and the deal.
Buyers often assume the report settles who fixes what. It does not. A report records findings and recommendations, and the contract decides whether the seller treats, repairs, credits the buyer or leaves the work to the buyer. Read the contract's wording on pest work before relying on any assumption about it.
Get a written quote for any recommended work before negotiating. A figure from a company that has seen the property gives both sides something specific to agree on, and the price is confirmed on site before any work starts.
If the two agents disagree about what the report requires, ask the licensee who wrote it to explain the finding in plain words. An explanation of a finding is worth having in writing as well.
How old can a termite report be?
This guide does not state how long a termite report stays current, because that is not sourced here. Ask the lender, the agent and the inspector how old a report can be before it is treated as current, and whether a new inspection is expected.
A report is a record of one day. Whether it still describes the house after a month or a season depends on what has happened since, such as new work, a leak, a storm or a change of occupant. Those are reasons to ask for a fresh inspection rather than rely on an older one.
Lenders and agents set their own expectations, and those are the ones that count in a sale. Ask them directly. Ask the inspector too, because the inspector can say what may have changed since the last visit and what a re-inspection would cover.
If you are the seller, the same question applies. A report ordered early can be reused only if the buyer and the lender accept it, so settle that before you spend the money on one.
What should a buyer or seller do before closing?
Read the report with the agent, ask the inspector to explain every finding and gap, and get written quotes for any recommended work. Settle who pays and who does the work in the contract before the deal closes, and keep a copy of each.
Buyers should walk the property with the inspector or the agent if possible, and write down the questions as they arise. Those questions become the agenda for any call with a company about the work.
Sellers benefit from reading the report before a buyer does. A finding you have seen first can be priced, explained and dealt with on your own terms, rather than discovered at the negotiating table.
Either side can call (855) 974-4733 to talk through a report and its quotes. That conversation is about the findings and what they mean. The price for any work is confirmed on site before work starts.
Ask for a copy of the final report with every page, including any attachments and photographs the inspector included. Pages get lost in a sale, and a missing page can hide a finding.
Should a seller order a report before listing?
A seller who orders a report before listing sees the findings first, and can decide how to handle them before a buyer starts negotiating. The report is still a record of one day, and a buyer may still order a separate inspection.
A seller's report can be useful because it removes surprises. A finding the seller has seen first can be explained, priced and dealt with on the seller's timetable, rather than appearing for the first time during escrow.
A seller's report does not bind a buyer. The buyer's lender and agent may ask for their own inspection, and the buyer can order a separate report. Both sides then have documents to compare, and a difference between them is a question to resolve rather than proof that one report is wrong.
Share the findings and the plan for them with the agent before listing. Keep the quotes for any work and a record of what was done, since a buyer will ask what was found and what was changed.
Does the company that inspects also have to do the work?
Nothing in this guide says the inspector must also do the repair. The inspection and the treatment can be done by different businesses, so ask who will do any recommended work, whether it is quoted separately and what it covers.
The person who writes the report and the company that treats the property can be the same business or different ones. The answer changes how a buyer or seller should compare quotes, because a report from one business and a repair quote from another are two separate pieces of evidence.
Ask the inspector whether it has any stake in the work that follows, and ask the agents to be clear about any referral. That is not a claim about any particular company. It is a normal question to ask when a report leads to a repair.
Get the scope of any recommended work in writing before the deal closes, with the areas, the method and the price, which is confirmed on site before work starts.
Frequently asked questions
Is a termite report a guarantee?
No. It is an inspection record for one day, and it describes what was found and what could not be reached. It does not promise a future result.
What happens if the inspector cannot reach an area?
The report lists it under further inspection. That is a gap to close by arranging access and having the area inspected, not a clean result.
Does the report say who has to pay for repairs?
No. The report records findings and recommendations. The purchase contract and the negotiation decide who handles the work and at whose cost.
How much does a termite report cost?
This guide does not publish a price. The cost depends on the property and what is involved, and it is confirmed on site before any work starts. Calling (855) 974-4733 is how to begin that conversation.
Can I get a second opinion on a report?
Yes. A buyer can order a separate inspection, and the two reports can be compared. A difference between them is a question to resolve with both inspectors and the agents, not a reason to ignore either report.
What is the access note for?
It tells you what the inspector could not see. Read it alongside the findings, because a further inspection entry is a gap that should be closed before the sale is treated as settled.
Sources
This guide is general information for San Joaquin County homeowners, not a substitute for an on-site inspection. Prices are estimates. See our disclaimer.