Home Buying Tips - Termite Inspections

Looking to buy or sell a home in Covina, California? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price  Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market.  You may also call us at (626) 643-0723 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. 

Today I'm going to be talking about the importance of home inspections, but more precisely, termite inspections.

Let me introduce Frank Aguirre from Buy-Rite Termite & Pest Control.

The main point of termite inspections is to detect the absence of presence of wood-destroying pests and organisms.

• The pests are the termites, and the organisms are things such as dry rot or water rot.
• Whether you're buying or selling you need a thorough inspection.
• If there is an active problem, then you will need to identify the species causing it, because there are different ways to treat different problems. You can either treat them locally, or treat the problem by way of fumigation.
• Termites require fumigation, and dry rot will require the replacement of the wood that is infected.
• Most sources of rot come from leaky showers or toilets.
• In a termite report you can expect 5-8 pages of documentation including pictures.
• Frank recommends that you get a termite inspection once every year, as termites swarm 6-8 times per year.
• Getting a termite inspection every three years is the equivalent of going to the doctor every three years, which is just not healthy.

Frank is a licensed pest control operator and he can be reached at (888) 575-2782

As always, if you need any help with real estate in the Covina area, give me a call at (626) 643-0723 or email me at CC@CCandCO.net

Why a Home Warranty will Indefinitely Save you Money

Looking to buy or sell a home in Covina, California? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price  Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market.  You may also call us at (626) 643-0723 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Hello again and welcome back to my video blog. I wanted to introduce to you one of my trusted affiliates, Francine Hyan, who works with First American Home Buyer's Protection. She has been practicing in the business for more than twenty years, so listen up!

For sellers, it's very important to provide a warranty on a home because otherwise a buyer will be coming after you for the various problems that will arise after closing escrow. A home warranty will cover all the major systems and appliances that begin to malfunction because of normal usage.

For example...let's say you have had a home inspection and the seller successfully resolves all the issues encountered, but two days after you close escrow the hot water heater begins to leak. In this circumstance, (assuming you have a home warranty) all you have to do is call your warranty provider who will have a maintenance technician come and resolve the issue at no cost to you. Without a home warranty, this sort of scenario could cost you upwards of $1,400.

One thing that a home warranty will not do is upgrade your home. For example, if you need a new water heater, the warranty won't cover modifications needed to install it correctly, but it will cover the cost of the heater. Overall, you're still going to be saving yourself thousands of dollars.

Another example would be if you needed a new air conditioner to meet EPA standards. The warranty would cover the cost of the new system, but would not cover the cost of modifying your home in order for the system to work properly.

Home warranties are available to any home going through an escrow, and it's important to buy one so that you can be fully protected the day you sign your lease and move into your new home.

While a warranty will not cover everything in your home, it will surely save you thousands of dollars at one point or another.

You can contact Francine at 1 800 698-0422 x 6345 or email her at fahyan@firstam.com