Did a home inspection this morning on a beautiful piece of property with a pond and several bat houses. The wife got a little freaked out. I just mentioned that due to the location the bats would be very beneficial for eating LOTS of mosquitoes! (That didn’t help very much). There were at least 4 nesting boxes attached to the exterior of the home. They are protected species and I was wondering how I should formally comment on this condition? Has anyone else come across this?
Well, to be honest with you. After I pointed this out, Mrs. client proceeded to put her “hoodie” hood on and tightened the strings around her face. She didn’t do any flying, but she sure moved quickly from the rear of the home!!
I do like how the other set are next to the gable vents!
I don’t think I would comment on them at all (beyond what you already have verbally). They don’t appear to be a defect. In this case they aren’t vermin in the attic. They are no more than a bird house as far as I’m concerned… Of course I’m open to hearing other opinions on the matter.
When I was in the attic, I didn’t see any bats there. However, I did report a safety defect that the scuttle hole to the attic from the attached garage was open and not covered with a self-closing fireproof door. This would be a place where the bats could easily enter. The inspection was performed from 8:30 am to 11:50 am and the outdoor temp was in the low 50’s. Not the most ideal time/temp for any activity.
I know Mrs. Client was not fond of the whole situation. The gable vents did have substantial hardware cloth stapled over them. Thanks all for the info!
My wife woke up in our home with one of these critters sharing her pillow about 3 years ago. She ended up catching it and it was sent in for Rabies analysis because she thought she might have been scratched by it. She ended up getting the 1st course of the shots because of the delay getting the test results back. We did have a serious case of rabies in the county to the west about a year and a half ago.
The clients are aware they are present on the property.
Bat houses found in at least 4 places around the exterior of the home. It is beyond the scope of a home inspection to comment on these types of habitats. Bats are known be be a protected species and would encourage the client to seek further information on maintenance and living in the vicinity of these mosquito eating mammals.
I agree that bats that stay out of the house are beneficial, but here at least, if you wake up with a bat in your bedroom the county health department recommends that you undergo the series of rabies shots. Painful and expensive rabies shots.
It turns out that some bats have teeth so sharp you may not know you’ve been bitten. If you wait to see if you develop rabies… it’s too late. You’re going to die. That’s what they told me after my client called saying “Hi, you inspected a house for me a couple of months ago and …”
If you found brown recluses in the crawlspace would your tell your client? How about rattlesnakes under the porch? If you bought a house and a member of your family was injured by venomous or dangerous wildlife that your inspector could have warned you about but chose not to… what would you do? I think inspectors are duty-bound to protect their clients.
Some states like California have disclosure laws which include wildlife. My experience has been that generally, disclosure laws are toothless 'ol grandmas and people can’t be trusted to disclose anything that can’t later be proven in court.
I’m fully aware of this, 1st hand personal experience. If you can catch the bat, it can be sent it for analysis but as in our case, it was on the bedroom pillow close to the head on a Saturday. Only 1 series of shots had to be administered since the results came back negative for rabies.
This case represents the sixth known occurrence of human recovery after rabies infection; however, the case is unique because the patient received no rabies prophylaxis either before or after illness onset.
In every home that I inspected where I located bats and guano, the Buyers walked.
Who wants to live with Bats?
Buyer: Oh, we found this beautiful home nestled in a great area of (city). It’s in great shape and it comes equipped with bats in the attic. I can’t wait to close this deal move in.
