Pest Control Contracts and Termite Bonds: What You're Actually Buying

Contract vs. pay-per-visit: run the math, not the instinct

HomeAdvisor, This Old House and Angi each put a single general pest-control visit at $108–$261 (national average about $171–$172, wider spectrum $50–$500). A recurring plan usually quotes a lower per-visit rate than that one-off number, plus free re-treatment if the pest returns before the next scheduled visit — which is the real value, since a one-time visit rarely comes with a callback guarantee.

The math tips toward a contract once you are treating the same recurring pests (ants, spiders, seasonal invaders) more than once or twice a year, or once you want the free-callback guarantee as insurance against a bad first treatment. It tips toward pay-per-visit for a single identified problem — a wasp nest, one rodent that got in through a since-sealed gap, or a one-time bed bug treatment — where the job is priced as a whole course of treatment already and a contract adds a commitment with nothing left to prevent.

Price your own pest and home size first with the pest control cost calculator, then use that per-treatment figure as your baseline for comparing a plan's quoted per-visit rate.

Five contract terms that matter more than the quoted price

• Auto-renewal and cancellation notice. Many annual plans auto-renew for another full term unless you cancel in writing 30–60 days before the renewal date — a window most homeowners miss.
• What counts as a covered pest. A "general pest" plan commonly excludes termites, bed bugs, and wildlife — each of those is priced and contracted separately, and a technician who finds one on a routine visit will quote it as an add-on, not treat it under the existing plan.
• Per-visit vs. per-cycle pricing. Confirm whether the quoted number is charged every visit or is the total for the whole service cycle (often quarterly) — the two numbers can differ by 3–4x for the same contract.
• Free callback guarantee. Ask explicitly whether a pest sighting between scheduled visits gets a free re-treatment or a new service call — this is the main reason a contract beats one-off visits, and not every plan includes it.
• Minimum term. Some plans require a 12-month commitment even if billed monthly; cancelling early can trigger a cancellation fee equal to the discount you received.

What a termite bond actually is

A termite bond is not the same product as a termite treatment. The treatment — priced at $250–$1,000 per HomeAdvisor, This Old House and Angi — is the one-time (or multi-year) job of applying soil treatment or bait stations. The bond is a separate, renewable service contract layered on top of it: a basic bond (re-treatment only if termites return) runs roughly $150–$300 a year to renew, and a premium bond that also covers repair of new termite damage runs roughly $300–$500 a year, per TermiteTreatmentPrice.com's 2026 pricing. Starting a bond fresh — the initial treatment plus the first year — typically runs $500–$2,500.

The distinction matters because a homeowner who paid for one-time treatment and let the bond lapse has no ongoing protection at all — the treatment's effectiveness fades over years, and a lapsed bond cannot simply be reinstated without a fresh inspection, and sometimes a fresh treatment.

Buying or selling a house with an active bond

Most termite bonds transfer to a new owner, and this is where they earn their keep in a real estate transaction: an active, transferable bond means a wood-destroying-insect inspection is already on file, which can satisfy a lender's inspection requirement faster than scheduling one from scratch during a tight closing window, per Termite Control Care's transfer guidance. Transfer fees are modest — commonly $25–$100, with some regional companies advertising $100–$250.