Pest Protection

    Pest Protection: Included With Your Membership

    Professional pest prevention is included at Steward and above — coordinated by your steward, performed by our licensed pest protection partners. No separate vendor to find, no separate bill to pay.

    Why Pest Protection Matters

    Homeowners insurance explicitly excludes all pest damage and all pest treatment. What you don't prevent, you pay for entirely out of pocket.

    Pest Damage Impact

    10–20%

    Home value reduction from untreated pest infestation

    Termite Damage

    $3K–$50K+

    Average termite repair cost — 100% excluded from homeowners insurance

    Termite Report (WDI) Savings

    $100–150

    Complimentary at Superintendent+ — required for VA/FHA loans in MD/VA

    What's Covered at Each Tier

    Pest protection scales with your membership. Every level above Essential includes coordinated prevention — no separate contract required.

    Steward+

    Quarterly Exterior Prevention

    Perimeter treatment targeting ants, spiders, wasps, hornets, and seasonal invaders. Applied by our licensed pest protection partners on a schedule aligned with your quarterly visit.

    Superintendent+

    Full Interior + Exterior Protection

    All exterior prevention plus interior treatments and rodent bait station placement. Includes a free annual termite inspection covering all structural wood members.

    Estate

    Premium Seasonal Treatment

    All Superintendent pest services plus seasonal mosquito, tick, and flea treatment from April through October, and an in-ground termite bait system for continuous underground termite protection.

    Superintendent+

    Free Termite Report (WDI) at Home Sale

    A complimentary termite & wood-pest report (WDI) when you sell your home — the report many lenders require before a home sale. Required for VA and FHA loan buyers in Maryland and Virginia. Standard market cost: $100–150.

    Pest Protection by Membership Tier

    TierPest CoverageTermite InspectionWDI Report
    Essential
    $149/mo
    Add-on available (+$55/mo)Not includedNot included
    Steward
    $219/mo
    Quarterly exterior prevention includedNot includedNot included
    Superintendent
    $379/mo
    Most Protection
    Full interior + exterior + rodent bait stationsFree annual termite inspectionFree WDI report at home sale
    Estate
    $849/mo
    Premium
    Superintendent pest + mosquito/tick/flea (Apr–Oct)Free annual inspection + in-ground bait systemFree WDI report at home sale

    DMV Seasonal Pest Calendar

    The DC metro area's mid-Atlantic climate creates distinct pest pressure throughout the year. Our treatment schedule is timed to address each wave before it reaches your home.

    Spring
    • Ants (carpenter, pavement, odorous)
    • Stinging insects (wasps, hornets, yellow jackets)
    • Termite swarmers emerge
    • Spiders become active
    Quarterly exterior perimeter treatment begins — applied at Steward+ by our licensed pest protection partners.
    Summer
    • Mosquitoes (peak June–August)
    • Ticks (Lyme disease risk in DMV)
    • Fleas (especially with pets)
    • Stinging insects at peak activity
    Estate members receive seasonal mosquito, tick, and flea treatment (April–October). Superintendent+ continues quarterly prevention.
    Fall
    • Rodents seek indoor shelter
    • Stink bugs (brown marmorated)
    • Spotted lanternfly (Northern VA)
    • Spiders move indoors
    Rodent bait station placement and inspection at Superintendent+. Exterior perimeter re-treatment at Steward+.
    Winter
    • Cockroaches in heated spaces
    • Overwintering spiders
    • Mice and rats in attics/basements
    • Cluster flies near windows
    Interior treatments at Superintendent+. Rodent bait station monitoring continues. In-ground termite bait system monitored year-round at Estate.

    How Pests Actually Find Your Home

    Pest control companies treat after entry. We identify and address the structural entry points themselves — because a mouse that never enters never becomes a colony.

    A 1/4-Inch Gap Is All It Takes

    A mouse can compress its body through any gap it can fit its skull through — approximately 1/4 inch, the diameter of a pencil. A single female mouse can produce 8 pups every 3 weeks. A pair that enters your home in October can become a colony of 50–80 by spring — without a single visible sighting in living areas.

    The entry points below are systematically checked as part of our exterior perimeter walk at Steward and above. Entry point documentation is added to your digital home record. Unsealed penetrations are flagged for remediation.

    Garage Door Weatherstripping

    Rodents, wasps, beetles

    The single most commonly missed entry point on luxury homes. Worn or compressed weatherstripping along the bottom and sides of the garage door creates gaps that mice can compress through — a mouse needs only a 1/4-inch gap, roughly the diameter of a pencil. Wasps frequently nest inside the hollow sections of weatherstripping tracks. Our quarterly perimeter check includes the full garage door seal condition.

    Utility Penetrations

    Mice, rats, roaches, carpenter ants

    Every pipe, cable, and conduit that enters your home from outside — telecom lines, gas lines, electrical service entrance, water supply, HVAC refrigerant lines — is a potential highway. The gap between pipe and foundation or siding is almost never sealed to a pest-proof standard at original construction. Rodents follow these pathways directly into wall cavities and attic spaces. We document and flag unsealed penetrations at every exterior walk.

    Roofline Gaps: Soffits & Fascia

    Squirrels, bats, birds, wasps

    Rotten or damaged fascia boards create soffit gaps that squirrels and bats exploit as attic entry. A gap as small as 1.5 inches is sufficient for a squirrel to enter. Once inside, squirrels chew wiring (creating fire risk), and bats create guano contamination that can require expensive remediation. Wasps routinely establish nests inside soffit cavities. Our exterior assessment at Steward+ specifically checks roofline and soffit condition.

    Foundation Expansion Joints & Weep Holes

    Ants, roaches, centipedes, crickets

    Control joints and weep holes in block or brick foundations are designed to let water out — but they let small insects in just as easily. Carpenter ants, American roaches (palmetto bugs), centipedes, and crickets all use these pathways as primary access. In the DMV's clay-heavy soil, moisture near the foundation is nearly constant, concentrating insect pressure at these entry points. Perimeter treatment specifically targets the foundation line at Steward+.

    Mulch and Vegetation Contact

    Termites, ants, roaches, rodents

    Mulch piled against your foundation does two things for pests: it retains moisture directly against the wood structure (termite ideal environment) and it provides physical cover for rodents and insects to move unseen. The industry standard is 6 inches of clearance between mulch or groundcover and your home's siding or foundation. Rodents in particular use mulch beds as staging ground before breaching the structure. We flag mulch contact at every exterior visit.

    Door and Window Weatherstripping

    Stink bugs, beetles, moths, wasps

    Worn weatherstripping around entry doors and windows is the primary route for stink bugs, beetles, and moths — especially in fall when insects mass-seek shelter. Wasps investigate and sometimes nest in gaps at door frames and window sills. Compressed or cracked stripping creates light gaps visible from inside at night — those same gaps allow dozens of insects per hour to enter during peak fall migration. We document weatherstripping condition as part of the exterior caulk and sealant survey.

    Your Homeowners Insurance Covers None of This

    Standard homeowners insurance explicitly excludes all pest damage and all pest treatment. A $3,000 termite discovery is 100% out of pocket — the repair, the treatment, and the structural work. Our Superintendent and Estate members receive a free annual termite inspection. Finding termite activity early means a $500 treatment rather than a $30,000+ structural repair.

    Protect Your Home Today

    Pest Protection FAQs

    Protect Your Home from Pest Damage

    Join DMV homeowners who have pest protection built into their membership. Plans with pest control start at $219/month.

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