The NVAR Residential Sales Contract requires the seller, at the seller's expense, to furnish a written wood-destroying insect report dated no more than 90 days before Settlement. If that report shows live insects or visible damage, the seller pays for treatment and repairs and must provide written evidence before Settlement.
This is general information, not legal advice. Contract language changes between form revisions and can be modified by addenda or by an "as is" clause. Read your own signed contract and confirm anything that matters with your agent or attorney. Links to the source documents appear at the end of this page.
Why this clause matters more in Virginia than in most states
Virginia follows caveat emptor — let the buyer beware. A seller may not lie or actively conceal a defect, and must answer direct questions honestly, but has no general duty to volunteer what is wrong with the house.
The Virginia Residential Property Disclosure Act (Va. Code § 55.1-700 et seq.) works the opposite way from disclosure statutes in most states. The statement the seller delivers says the seller makes no representations about the property's condition and that inspections are the buyer's responsibility.
That reverses the usual reading of the termite clause. In a disclosure state, the clause is one protection among many. In Virginia it is one of the few affirmative obligations a buyer actually gets in writing — which is exactly why deleting it matters so much. More on that below.
What the clause actually says
The wood-destroying insect paragraph of the NVAR Residential Sales Contract obligates the seller to do four things:
- Furnish a written report from a pest control firm, at the seller's expense.
- Date it no more than 90 days prior to Settlement.
- Have it show that the dwellings and garages on the property are free of visible evidence of live wood-destroying insects and free from visible damage.
- Provide reasonable access to the property for the inspection.
Note what the report must cover: not just live insects, but visible damage as well. Old damage from a colony treated years ago still appears on the report and still falls under the seller's repair obligation, unless the parties negotiate otherwise.
Who pays for treatment and repairs
The seller does, under the standard form. Any treatment for live wood-destroying insects and any repair of damage identified in the report are made at the seller's expense, and the seller provides written evidence of that work before Settlement.
This is the part buyers most often underestimate. Treatment alone might run $500 to $2,000. Repairing a damaged sill plate, joist, or subfloor section is a construction cost, not a pest control cost, and it can exceed the treatment several times over.
The deadlines: report window and evidence before Settlement
Two separate timing requirements, and they are frequently confused.
| Requirement | Timing under the contract |
|---|---|
| Report date | no more than 90 days prior to Settlement |
| Written evidence of treatment and repair | prior to the date of Settlement |
The contract sets no separate cutoff such as "three weeks before closing" — that figure circulates in local real estate blogs as practical advice, not as contract language. The practical advice is sound, because treatment and repair take time to schedule and complete, but do not mistake it for an obligation your contract imposes.
What proof the seller must provide
Written evidence of the treatment and of the repair. In practice this means the completed report showing the finding, plus an invoice or treatment record from the licensed firm that performed the work, plus documentation of any construction repair.
If you are the buyer, this is the moment to verify that the company named on the paperwork actually holds a current Virginia pesticide business license. Verification takes about a minute and is covered further down.
What an "as is" clause removes
Adding an "as is" provision deletes the contract clauses dealing with property condition — including the wood-destroying insect provisions.
In Virginia this compounds. The statutory disclosure regime already places the burden of discovery on the buyer. Remove the contract's condition clauses on top of that, and a buyer has neither a statutory right to disclosure nor a contractual right to a clean report.
Buying "as is" in Virginia is a materially different transaction from buying "as is" in a disclosure state. If you are buying as is, order your own wood-destroying insect inspection and pay for it yourself — nobody else is obligated to look.
Who is allowed to perform the inspection in Virginia
The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) licenses pesticide businesses and certifies applicators through its Office of Pesticide Services.
Commercial applicator categories are set out in the Virginia Administrative Code at 2VAC5-685-70:
| Category | Scope |
|---|---|
| 7 | Industrial, institutional, structural, and health-related pest control |
| 7a | General pest control (excluding fumigation) |
| 7b | Wood-destroying pest control (excluding fumigation) — organisms that destroy structures made of wood |
| 7c | Fumigation |
| 8 | Public health pest control — pests of medical and public health significance |
Category 7b is the wood-destroying category. Category 8 concerns public health pests and is sometimes cited by mistake in this context.
Separately, the Virginia Pest Management Association runs a voluntary WDI Inspector Certification and publishes a directory of inspectors who hold it. It is an industry credential, not a state license, but it indicates specific training in completing the NPMA-33.
One point worth confirming directly: the exact state credential required to sign an NPMA-33 in Virginia is not clearly stated in the public materials we reviewed. If it matters to your transaction, call the VDACS Office of Pesticide Services at (804) 786-3798 and ask.
What the NPMA-33 report is — and is not
The NPMA-33 "Wood Destroying Insect Inspection Report" is the national form used to record the result. The current revision dates from 2019; earlier versions are obsolete.
What it records: visible evidence of wood-destroying insects — live or dead insects, their by-products, and observable damage — found during a careful visual inspection of readily accessible areas.
What it does not do: it is not a guarantee or warranty against latent, concealed, or future infestation or damage. A clean report means the inspector saw no visible evidence in the areas reachable on the day of the inspection. It does not mean there are no termites.
The form has a section listing obstructions and inaccessible areas — published guides disagree on its numeral, so read the printed labels on your own copy. Read that section as carefully as you read the finding itself: a report can be clean because the crawl space was blocked, the basement was finished, or spray foam insulation covered the sill. Those exclusions are the report's real content.
What counts as a wood-destroying insect
Beyond subterranean termites, the report covers carpenter ants, carpenter bees, and reinfesting wood-boring beetles. Drywood termites are relevant in some regions.
Damage patterns differ, and so do the remedies. Carpenter ants excavate wood to nest rather than eat it, which typically means a smaller repair scope but a colony that may be located somewhere other than where the damage appears.
How this differs from the general home inspection
Different inspector, different license, different report, different obligations.
| Home inspection | WDI inspection | |
|---|---|---|
| Ordered by | typically the buyer | seller, under this contract |
| Paid by | typically the buyer | seller, under this contract |
| Output | narrative report | NPMA-33 form |
| Regulated by | home inspector licensing | VDACS pesticide licensing |
| Findings obligate | negotiation, per contingency | treatment and repair by seller |
A home inspector may note suspected insect damage, but that note is not a wood-destroying insect report and will not satisfy a lender.
What happens when live insects are found
The finding triggers the seller's obligation. It does not, by itself, end the transaction. What it means next depends entirely on which side of the table you are on.
If you are selling
You carry the cost of both the treatment and the repair of any damage the report identifies, and you must produce written evidence before Settlement.
The practical risk is scheduling, not money. Treatment is quick; structural repair is not, and a contractor's availability is outside your control. Order the inspection early enough in the contract period that a bad result still leaves room to fix it.
Your action: get the inspection scheduled now rather than at the 90-day boundary, so that a finding does not collide with your Settlement date.
If you are buying
You are entitled to the report and to written evidence of any work performed. Two things are worth doing before you accept that paperwork.
Verify that the firm named on the treatment record holds a current Virginia pesticide business license. And read Section IV of the report — if the crawl space or a finished area was inaccessible, the clean finding covers less than it appears to.
Your action: if the report shows inaccessible areas that concern you, arrange your own inspection of those areas rather than relying on the seller's report.
If you are buying "as is"
The condition clauses, including this one, are gone. No report is owed to you and no treatment is owed to you. Virginia's disclosure regime will not fill that gap.
Your action: commission and pay for your own wood-destroying insect inspection before your contingency period expires.
If you are renting, not buying
This clause does not apply to you at all. A landlord's obligations for pest infestations come from the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, which is a separate body of law with different remedies and different deadlines.
Your action: see our page on landlord obligations for pest infestations in Virginia.
Can the buyer walk away over the report
Not automatically. The termite provision obligates the seller to treat and repair; it is not by itself a right to void the contract because insects were found.
Whether you can withdraw depends on the inspection contingency in your specific contract. A full inspection contingency generally allows a buyer to request remedies or to exit; a void-only contingency allows cancellation in defined circumstances but no repair demands. Check which one you signed before assuming either.
What a lender does when the report is not clean
For loans that require a wood-destroying insect report, the loan cannot close until the condition is resolved and clearance is documented. The finding therefore does not usually kill the purchase — it changes the timeline and the negotiation over who fixes what, and how fast.
How long the report stays valid if closing is delayed
The report is generally treated as valid for about 90 days from the inspection date, which aligns with the contract's own 90-day window. If Settlement slips beyond that, the lender may require a re-inspection before final approval.
This is a common and avoidable expense. If your closing date moves, ask the lender immediately whether a new report will be required, rather than discovering it during the final week.
Who pays if damage is discovered after closing
Once you have closed, the contract clause has been performed and no longer helps you. Your position depends on the disclosure record, the contents of the report, and whether anyone made a false statement — not on the termite paragraph.
In a caveat emptor state this is a genuinely difficult position, and it is the reason the pre-closing steps above deserve attention. A post-closing claim is a matter for a real estate attorney, not for a pest control company.
What voids the seller's obligation
Three situations come up repeatedly:
- An "as is" clause, which removes the condition provisions entirely.
- A negotiated addendum in which the parties agree to a credit or to a different allocation of responsibility instead of seller-performed work.
- Areas the inspector could not reach, which are excluded from the finding and therefore from the obligation attached to that finding.
Before you call: what costs what
An inspection and a treatment are two separate services with separate prices, and conflating them is the most common way people end up surprised by a bill.
| Typical Virginia range | What it produces | |
|---|---|---|
| Wood-destroying insect inspection and report | $65–$200 | the NPMA-33 form |
| General pest inspection | often free where the company expects to quote treatment | a verbal or written assessment |
| Termite treatment | $500–$2,000; more where damage is extensive | a treatment record |
| Structural repair | quoted by a contractor, frequently the largest of the three | an invoice, not a pest control document |
What is usually free: a quote for treatment, once a company has seen the problem.
What is usually not: the inspection report used in a real estate transaction, and any visit that produces a document rather than a price.
Ask which applies before you book. A company quoting one figure covering both inspection and treatment is not quoting what a sales contract or a lender requires.
Common misunderstandings
"A clean report means the house has no termites." It means no visible evidence was found in accessible areas on that date.
"The seller has to pay for everything termite-related." The obligation attaches to what the report identifies. Something not in the report is not covered by it.
"The contract gives three weeks for treatment." The contract requires written evidence before Settlement. Three weeks is a practitioner's rule of thumb, not a contract term.
"Virginia sellers must disclose known termite problems." Virginia is a caveat emptor state. A seller may not lie or conceal, but has no general duty to volunteer defects.
"The home inspector checked for termites." Unless a licensed firm issued an NPMA-33, no wood-destroying insect inspection has occurred.
What to ask before booking an inspection
Have these answered before you agree to a price. They also tell you quickly whether you are speaking with someone who does this work regularly.
- Does the quoted price include the completed NPMA-33 report, or is the form billed separately?
- Is the company's Virginia pesticide business license current, and under what name is it listed?
- What will you do if an area is inaccessible — note it and move on, or advise on gaining access?
- If live activity is found, is a re-inspection after treatment included or charged separately?
- How soon can the report be delivered in writing?
- Do you perform both the inspection and the treatment, and if so, how is that disclosed?
- Are carpenter ants, carpenter bees, and wood-boring beetles included, or termites only?
That last question matters more than it sounds. The report covers a category, not a single species.
What to have ready before you call
- The property address and the year the house was built.
- The foundation type: crawl space, basement, or slab.
- Your Settlement date.
- Whether the inspection is for a purchase, a refinance, or a loan program requirement.
- What has been observed, if anything, and where.
- Whether any area is currently inaccessible.
Typical costs in Virginia
| Item | Typical range |
|---|---|
| WDI inspection | $65–$200, varying by region and property size |
| Inspection under a loan-program requirement | often $50–$100, commonly seller-paid |
| Treatment, subterranean termites | $500–$2,000 |
| Extensive infestation or structural damage | $2,000–$5,000 and up |
Ranges compiled from published Virginia pricing surveys; confirm with a quote for your property. The inspection and any treatment are separate services with separate prices — a company that quotes one number for both is quoting something other than what this contract requires.
Frequently asked questions
Does the seller choose the inspection company? Under the standard form the seller furnishes the report at the seller's expense, so the seller ordinarily selects the firm. The buyer may commission an independent inspection separately.
Is a wood-destroying insect inspection required on every Virginia sale? No. It is required by this contract clause and by certain loan programs. A cash purchase with the clause deleted requires nothing.
Does the report cover outbuildings? The clause addresses dwellings and garages. Sheds, decks, and fences are commonly outside the scope. Ask before the inspection if a structure matters to you.
When do termites swarm in Virginia? March through June, on warm days after rain. A swarm indicates an established colony rather than a new arrival.
Can treatment be completed after Settlement? The contract calls for written evidence before Settlement. Any other arrangement is a negotiated change, and a lender may not accept it.
Verify before you pay anyone
Virginia publishes what you need to check a company yourself.
VDACS licenses pesticide businesses and publishes an updated list of currently licensed businesses weekly, with a public lookup for confirming that a company holds an active Pesticide Business License.
Ask for the license name. Companies frequently operate under a trade name that differs from the licensed entity. Ask which name the license is held under before you search for it.
VPMA maintains a directory of inspectors holding its voluntary WDI certification — a useful second check, though not a substitute for the state license.