When any of the calls on a report from 15, 16, 17, and 18 are check marked yes, the VA slows down the financing process. In this neighborhood these would be premium features.įor these types of calls we add a little extra verbiage to the report such as 'this is a common call in the area.' These extra words seem to help the reader of the termite report get a much better sense of these type of Faulty Grades.

A home here could be: built on a hill with slopes, have stucco exterior that runs into the grade (it doesn't stop above the grade exposing the stem wall), have basement or floor level built into the hillside, or any other type of slopes. Take a house in Paradise Valley (85253 - the most costly zip code in the South West). Even though these are called Faulty Grades, they are highly desirable styles of construction. Examples of these are: basements, sunken floor ( aka step down living-rooms), sunken tubs, interior fire-pits ( aka conversational pits), houses on hills that have slopes running to the back of the house or adjacent to the home, stucco exteriors that run into the grade. These Faulty Grade calls are really about the way the home or building is constructed. These terms won't be on any termite report, but understanding the difference can really help you get the transaction moving forward. Everything comes to a halt, until 'Faulty' is off of the report.įaulty Grades can be broken into two categories: 1. Especially when a lender reads it and sees 'Faulty'. It sounds simple enough until you read it on a termite report.

All faulty grades are based upon the exterior grade.' 'Faulty grades exists if the exterior grade is above or at the interior slab or wood floor level. Let's start with the definition from the OPM (Office of Pest Management).

This is an interesting and misunderstood term.

Strike force termite