One of the most important questions you can ask when it comes to property care is how different afflictions will affect your property’s health – and consequently, its value.
So, with woodworm being one of the most common problems that homeowners in the UK encounter, what are the chances of woodworm affecting the price of your home?
How Might Woodworm Affect Your Property’s Value?
Woodworm is, at it’s core, a household pest. It is a small, wood boring insect that feeds on your property’s timber from the inside, before emerging from the wood and multiplying before it ultimately dies.
Basically, this tiny insect is responsible for some serious timber degradation, and can easily leave timbers in need of repair if they are left to multiply and run free without treatment.
That means your floorboards, your timber roof beams, your lintels, decking, hardwood floor, and your furniture – it’s all at risk, and it can all be rendered ugly or useless if the woodworm is given free rein for long enough.
We all know how important it is to make your property look presentable before a sale. With the nasty bore holes and frass woodworm leaves behind, you are going to do yourself no favours leaving the woodworm to keep eating away when you are trying to sell your home, especially if you are trying to sell in the summer.
In short, leaving woodworm to spread is going to do nothing for your property’s appeal to prospective buyers.
What options are available to you if your property is already on the market or you are close to selling?
Can Woodworm Be Treated Before a House Sale?
If you are worried about a property that might have woodworm being put on the market, then there are steps you can take.
It would all start with a damp and timber survey to determine whether woodworm is, or is not, a factor in the property itself. Once their presence has been established, you will receive a written report from the team detailing the extent of the woodworm and the damage they have caused.
Your damp and timber report will include our recommended steps to get the woodworm removed, and any at-risk timber repaired or replaced.
So, if your property is on the market, or under offer, there is nothing to stop you from having our team come in and complete the remedial works needed to eradicate woodworm and restore your property’s timber.
In fact, you could even consider yourself in a good position in this situation.
The price of the damp and timber survey, the woodworm treatment, and any associated timber repair can all be considered when it comes to your property’s sale price.
This way, you aren’t losing any money in the long term, and all you are paying for is a more appealing property to those looking for a place to purchase, and securing yourself against the collapse of your chain when it comes to the actual sale itself.
What If a Property I Want to Buy Has Woodworm?
If woodworm is discovered in a property you are looking to purchase, it’s totally understandable that you might be put off – woodworm is not a dealbreaker when it comes to selling or buying a property, though.
Just like those selling a property in which woodworm has been discovered, you are going to have similar options available to you.
Whilst you will have to pay for the damp and timber survey (just like any survey during the purchase process), if woodworm is discovered, then you have a professional, PCA-backed survey to back up any requests you might make of the current owners.
For example, you may ask that they drop the price of the property in line with the quote for the woodworm treatment and timber remedial works, so you aren’t paying any extra for a problem that existed before your ownership.
Or, you could ask that the property owners sort out the remedial works themselves, and you can come to an agreement that you are both happy with during the writing of the contracts so that the problem is rectified when you move in.
Whatever your intended resolution, it’s always worth asking a properties owner if they are open to helping out, and making sure that when the property is handed over its either in a woodworm free state – or steps have been taken to make sure that once you do move in, the woodworm can be taken care of quickly, and potentially at a cost taken off of your house price.
Can Woodworm Affect a Property’s Value?
The short answer here is yes.
As we just discussed, the discovery of woodworm in a property is only going to conjure negative emotions and potentially dampen buyer enthusiasm.
Depending on the state of your timber after the woodworm has been eating away, you might even need some serious repair or restoration work done, which again, is not going to have any positive consequences.
All of this means that your asking price might have to be adjusted to reflect the price of remedial works. That’s if you have the benefit of a damp and timber survey letting you know what actions to take as well.
If you have forgone a damp and timber survey, and are just showcasing a property infested with woodworm, then you are no doubt going to be encouraging buyer doubt.
There’s every chance that potential buyers will be reluctant to put down money on a house that looks like it’s not being taken care of, and the uncertainty of the scope and damage that the woodworm has done will not do anything to push people on the market to pick your property.
The best course of action anytime you suspect woodworm in your property is to have it treated as early as possible.
Our surveyors can outline the extent of the woodworm in your property, and our technicians are well-versed in quickly dealing with the woodworm present effectively and entirely – even repairing or replacing your timber so that it is back to its original structural strength.
Get the whole process started by booking a damp and timber survey online today. Just fill in our contact form, and a member of our customer service team will get in touch. Alternatively, you can always call 0800 288 8660.
