What Is a WDIR-100 Termite Inspection?
The WDIR-100 is the wood destroying insect report used in North Carolina real estate transactions. This guide explains what it is, when a home sale needs one, what the inspection covers, and what happens if the inspection finds termites.Arrange an inspection
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Call NowTL;DR
- The problem
- A home sale needs a termite report, and the closing date will not wait.
- The solution
- An inspection of the accessible areas, with a WDIR-100 report written from the findings on the day.
- When to call
- Early in the buying or selling process, so there is time to act on the findings before closing.
The report, in plain language
The WDIR-100 is a one-page record of a visual inspection. It says three things: whether the inspector found visible evidence of subterranean termites or other wood destroying insects, whether there is visible damage, and whether there has been previous treatment. It is signed and dated by the inspector, and it is based on what could be seen in the accessible areas of the structure on the day of the visit — the foundation, the crawl space, the garage, the rooms where wood is exposed.
The form is sometimes called a termite letter, a termite certificate or a clearance letter. The name changes with the agent and the lender; the form and the inspection behind it do not. Many home sales need one, and some loans — including FHA and VA loans — require one as a condition of the loan. The WDIR-100 is the report that satisfies it.
When it fits in the buying timeline
Arrange the inspection early in the process, while there is still time to act on the findings before closing. The visit itself usually takes less than an hour for a typical Asheville home, and the report is written from the findings on the day — photographs of anything found, moisture readings where wood looks suspect. What takes time is what comes after a finding: treatment, monitoring, or a further look by a specialist where the damage needs one. That conversation — between the buyer, the seller and the agents, about who arranges the treatment and when — is the reason to inspect early rather than at the deadline.
For sellers, the same logic runs in reverse. An inspection before listing puts the report in hand when the buyer's inspector arrives, and it gives the seller time to deal with anything found. Agents who work the Asheville market arrange these inspections as a matter of routine, and the providers who do them know the local forms, the local lenders' requirements and the local closing timelines.
What the inspector can — and cannot — see
The report is based on a visual inspection of the accessible areas. The inspector walks the structure with a probe and a flashlight, tapping wood and listening for the hollow sound, looking for mud tubes on the foundation and in the crawl space, and checking moisture where wood is suspect. What the inspector cannot do is see inside walls, under slabs or behind fixed panels — and the report says so where that applies.
That limit is the reason a clean report is a record, not a promise. It means no evidence was found in the accessible areas on that day — not that termites can never appear. The annual inspection is recommended for owners as well as buyers for exactly this reason: the record builds up year by year, and the change between years is what matters. A home that has had treatment is inspected the same way, and the report records the previous treatment and whether there is current activity.
If the inspection finds something
A finding does not end the sale; it starts a conversation. The inspector will explain what was found, what it means, and what the next step is — treatment, monitoring, or a further look where the damage needs one. The termite control page on this site explains how treatment works: a soil treatment that creates a treated zone around and under the structure, or bait monitoring stations placed in the soil around the property, matched to the structure and the soil and the level of activity found.
Asheville's housing adds to the case for an early inspection. About 37% of homes in the metro were built before 1980, and older framing, crawl spaces and settled foundations are the places termites use. Bring the closing date and the property address when you call, so the report can be scheduled in time.
Many home sales need one, and some loans — including FHA and VA loans — require one as a condition of the loan. Arrange it early so there is time to act on the findings before closing.
Usually less than an hour for a typical Asheville home. The inspector walks the foundation, the crawl space, the garage and the interior rooms where wood is exposed.
No. The report records what was visible in the accessible areas on the day of the inspection. That is why the annual inspection is recommended for owners as well.
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