I just bought a home that had some termite damage. It was not extensive, but there was a load bearing wall in the back of the house with some damage around the windows. I too cannot see through walls, so I had to make the assumption that there was significant damage and factored it into the rehab costs. The deal still made sense so I moved forward.
I did have a carpenter look at it and he could not tell one way or the other for sure, so his position was that you have to assume the damage was there until proven otherwise. We did kick the tires a bit. There was some drywall flaking and softness in the walls. This told us there might be a problem. Turns out that there was not a problem.
Just my two cents. There is probably a more scientific way to test for damage.
the loan balance is $450,000, two weeks from foreclosure, about $30,000 to $40,000 in damages. I spoke with the bank, they are willing to work with us on a greatly reduced price, eg, in the low to mid 200’s. The ARV is about 400,000 to 450,000
the downside is, there is a great deal of termire damage, but no current sign of termites. I can’t tell about structural damage until I rip walls open and i can’t do that until I buy the property.
there seems to be enough profit potential (over $100,000)to justify the deal.
the only wild card I see is potential structural damage from termites?
I work for well known termite company as termite technician,call the termite company in your area and ask for inspection and what they can recommend. i don’t know where you live base on i cannot tell your situation.
If the house is old and you want to repair the damaged part,just remove the infested part and ask for the termite technician to inject some chemical on the infested part right close to the foundation.
Ask if they can do soil treatment around the perimeter and crawl space if you have one,again,i dont know what state you lived ,some termite are more active in a hot temperature area and they swarm after you spray/inject some chemical on them. if the house is old and you want to do some quick sale on the property make sure you add the report of the inspector to your buyer which is a big plus.
Another one ,if the Inspector recommend some product that they will install around the house for termite colony elimination that they install in the ground, say No to it you don’t need it. make sure before the repair of the damage part you ask the termite guy to Spray/inject of chemical and treatment of infested area and you be fine. let me know if i can a help.
Hope this one help.
Assume the worst and have estimates to support the costs if it is the worst. You may be able to get the bank to go lower with supporting fingures. There would seem to be enough equity after the short sale to justify this kind of expense.