Ten questions, sorted by depth
Hampton Roads, VA
Questions We Hear Every Week
If your question is not here, our resource guides go deeper, and the phone goes deepest. Nobody at this company is paid to be vague.
At the curb
Before anyone opens a hatch: how fast we get there, how far we go, and what looking costs you.
- 01 Closings route first
How quickly can you come out?
Same-day and next-day slots are often available, fastest in Norfolk, Virginia Beach, and Chesapeake where routes are densest. Closings get priority because contract dates do not move for anyone.
- 02 Seven cities, plus the Carolina line
What areas do you cover?
All seven Hampton Roads cities, the Peninsula through Williamsburg, Poquoson and York County, and the nearest counties of northeastern North Carolina including Moyock and Elizabeth City. Full details are on our service areas pages.
- 03 Free when you suspect a problem
Do you charge for inspections?
Homeowner inspections when you suspect a problem are free; finding the issue is how we earn the work. Official NPMA-33 reports for real estate closings are a paid flat-rate document, quoted when you book.
At the door
The paperwork a lender wants, the promise attached to a treatment, and what actually gets applied around a house with children and animals in it.
- 04 The NPMA-33 a lender asks for
What is a termite letter and do I need one?
It is the NPMA-33 wood destroying insect report lenders request before funding a purchase or refinance. VA loans in Virginia require one. If you are under contract in Hampton Roads, assume the answer is yes and schedule it early.
- 05 Written, and it transfers
What is the 10-year guarantee?
Qualifying liquid termite treatments carry a written 10-year re-treatment guarantee: if subterranean termites return to a structure we treated, we re-treat it. It transfers with the home, which future buyers appreciate.
- 06 Tell us about pets when you book
Are your treatments safe for my kids and pets?
We use EPA-registered products applied at labeled rates by licensed technicians, with placements chosen to keep baits and treated zones away from little hands and paws. Tell us about pets, aquariums, and gardens when you book and the plan accounts for them.
Under the floor
The next two questions get asked after somebody finally looked, and they are the two that decide what a house costs to keep.
Under the floor
- 07 Around twenty percent and up
Why is there fungus on my floor joists?
Because the crawl space has held enough moisture, sustained readings around twenty percent wood moisture and up, for wood decay fungi to activate. The cure is fixing the moisture and treating the wood, in that order. Spraying without drying is a subscription, not a solution.
- 08 We measure before we recommend
Vapor barrier or full encapsulation: which will I need?
Depends on your readings and your ground. Moderate moisture on decently drained soil usually calls for a proper vapor barrier. Chronic wet, tidal neighborhoods, and musty-house symptoms point to sealed encapsulation with dehumidification. We measure first and recommend from the numbers.
The framing, and the company
The last two are about who is holding the tools once the finding is written down.
- 09 Our own carpentry crew
Do you do the repairs too, or refer them out?
Our own carpentry crew repairs termite and moisture damage: sills, joists, subfloor, and supports. One company finding and fixing means the repair matches the finding and the paperwork clears the lender in one pass.
- 10 Norfolk based since 2015
Are you really veteran-owned?
Yes. Detect Termite & Moisture Services is veteran-owned and Norfolk-based, serving the most military region in the country since 2015, with a BBB A+ rating and accreditation since 2016.
Deeper reading lives in the resource library: termite letter costs, VA loan requirements, moisture readings, and the encapsulation decision, all written for this region specifically. Or skip the reading: 757-583-4444.
End of the descent
Put a licensed inspector on your schedule
Same-day appointments are often available across Hampton Roads. Call or send the form and we will confirm your time window.
Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM. Licensed and insured in Virginia.