Termite Bond in South Carolina and Georgia coastal areas

[Michael S.]

For those of you in the South Carolina/ Georgia coastal areas, do you purchase a termite bond to cover your buy and hold rental properties? Or, do you choose to do preventative maintenance yourself, via sprays and stakes that you place in the ground?

All of my homes are built on slab. I don't have any termite problems yet, but I just want to be smart and economical about preventing them. I have heard quotes for $200 a year for a termite bond that will do annual treatments and cover all treatment and repair costs should an infestation develop.

The way I look at it, if there's say a 5% chance any given year that I get a termite problem, and the cost to pay for the treatment if caught early is only $2000, then its not worth the cost of the bond. The big "IF" there is catching it early if there is a problem.