What a CL-100 actually covers
The report addresses accessible structural wood: the crawlspace, sill plates, floor joists, band boards, and any visible framing that can be reached without cutting into the house. It documents active infestation, previous damage, and the conditions that make a return likely. In Lexington that usually means standing water under the house, missing vapor barrier, or grade that slopes toward the foundation instead of away from it.
Why Midlands crawlspaces fail this
Our soil holds water and our summers stay humid for months. A crawlspace that reads fine in February can read very differently in August. Wood that sits above twenty percent moisture long enough will attract termites whether or not anyone has ever seen one. That is why the moisture reading matters as much as the insect finding, and why a CL-100 that only says "no visible termites" is not telling you enough.
What happens if something turns up
A finding is not automatically a deal breaker. It is information, with photos, that tells you what treatment or repair the house needs and roughly what scope you are looking at. Plenty of Midlands homes have old, treated damage that has been stable for years. The report separates what is active from what is history, so the negotiation is about real numbers instead of fear.
Timing it with your closing
Most lenders want the CL-100 dated within thirty days of closing, so ordering it too early can mean paying for it twice. Tell us your closing date and we will schedule it inside that window. The report goes out the same day the inspection happens.
What a clear report is worth at the closing table
A clean CL-100 does two jobs. It satisfies the lender so the file moves, and it gives you a dated baseline for the condition of the structural wood on the day you bought. Two years later, if a moisture problem develops, you have documentation of what the crawlspace looked like before you owned it. That matters in a warranty claim, in an insurance conversation, and in any dispute about whether a condition was disclosed. Keep the report with your closing documents rather than in an email folder you will never find again.