Pest Inspections near you

Before you book anything, be clear which of these you need, because the reports are not interchangeable and a lender will not accept the wrong one.

This report exists because a lender wants to know that the collateral is not being eaten. The Department of Veterans Affairs sets the pattern that buyers encounter most often, publishing a list of local requirements and stating that only states requiring a wood-destroying insect inspection are included, and that a state not on the list does not require one unless specific issues are noted in the appraisal report. Several whole states are listed, among them Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Texas and Virginia, and additional states require the inspection only in certain counties. VA directs readers to Chapter 12 of its Lenders Handbook for the underlying rules.

States then govern what the report looks like and who may sign it. The Texas Department of Agriculture publishes the Official Texas Wood Destroying Insect Report and is unambiguous that the form is a prescribed form and no revisions or omissions are allowed, which means a company cannot substitute its own letterhead summary. California keeps the reports as a searchable record: the Structural Pest Control Board runs a Wood Destroying Organism System where anyone can check whether a specific property has been inspected within the last two years, with copies obtainable by written request to the board. If you are buying in California, run that search before you accept a report from someone else's inspector.

One limitation is worth stating up front, because it disappoints people at closing. A wood destroying insect report is about wood destroying insects, not about every pest in the house. Rodents, cockroaches, ants that do not damage wood and wildlife in the attic are outside its scope. If those matter to you, they need a separate inspection and a separate written report.

There is no national pest inspector license in the United States, and this is the single most useful thing to check. EPA states that state, territorial and tribal authorities certify pesticide applicators, that federal law requires certification for anyone applying or supervising restricted use pesticides, and that many states require all commercial applicators to be certified. For termite work specifically, EPA tells homeowners that firms offering termite services must be licensed by your state and to ask to see the company's license.

Inspection is frequently its own category rather than a side activity. Texas lists termite control as a license category defined as the inspection and control of termites, beetles or other wood destroying organisms, and requires licensing of businesses and individuals that perform structural pest control for hire under the Structural Pest Control Act. California divides the trade into three branches, with Branch 3 covering wood destroying organisms through insecticides or structural repairs and corrections, Branch 2 covering general household pests, and Branch 1 covering fumigation. A company licensed for general pest control is not by that fact licensed to issue a wood destroying organism report. Ask which license number and which category the inspector personally holds, then verify it with the board.

The structural weakness of this market is that the party inspecting is usually the party that would be paid to treat. That does not make an inspection dishonest, but it does mean a finding should be readable by someone else. A defensible report names the species, says where the evidence was found, distinguishes active infestation from old damage, and separates what was observed from what is inferred. A weak report says that conditions conducive to infestation were noted and recommends an annual program.

Three habits protect a buyer. First, ask for the evidence, not the conclusion: photographs, locations and, where a species matters, an identification. Second, ask what was inaccessible, because a crawlspace that was too tight to enter or an attic with no access hatch changes what the report is worth. Third, be wary of pressure. EPA's broader advice on pest control is to choose a pest control company carefully and to read the pesticide product label before anything is applied, and a company that wants a signature on a treatment agreement in the same visit as the inspection is asking you to skip both. Where the inspection is for a sale, getting an inspector who is not also bidding on the treatment is the cleanest way to remove the conflict entirely.

Inspection pricing depends mostly on scope and on the documentation produced. The variables are the size of the home and the number of structures, whether there is a crawlspace or the inspection is slab-only, whether attic and crawl access exists or has to be created, whether a prescribed state report form and its filing are part of the service, how quickly the report is needed for a closing, whether moisture readings or detection equipment are included, and whether the inspector is independent of any company bidding on the treatment. Ask whether the fee includes the written report and, in a sale, whether the form the lender requires is the one you are being quoted for.

LokalMatch is the first step and nothing more. You describe what you need once: a lender-required report before closing, a diagnostic visit for something you have seen, or an independent second opinion on a report you were handed. Inspection and pest control companies serving your area receive the request, and the ones interested contact you. Pros pay for the requests they receive, and the service costs homeowners nothing. LokalMatch does not perform inspections, does not issue or review reports, does not set prices, and does not vet, rank or recommend any company, so confirming the license category, the insurance and what the report will actually cover is yours to do.