Somewhere between signing the contract and closing day, your agent or inspector will hand you a menu: sewer scope? Termite report? Roof certification? Thermal imaging? Each one costs extra, each one takes time out of your option period, and nobody wants to be the buyer who paid for everything or the buyer who skipped the one that mattered. The honest answer is that in Las Cruces and El Paso, some of these add-ons are close to mandatory and others depend entirely on the house in front of you.
This guide walks through the add-on menu the way a straight-shooting inspector would explain it over the hood of their truck — what each one actually is, which houses need which, and how to use what you find.
The Add-On Menu, Explained Plainly
- Termite / wood-destroying insect (WDI) report. A licensed pest professional inspects for evidence of subterranean termites and other wood-destroying organisms and issues a formal report. In this valley, this one is near-mandatory. Subterranean termites are endemic to the Borderland, they work out of sight, and many lenders want the report anyway. Our desert termites guide covers what the inspector looks for — mud tubes, damaged sill plates, activity around plumbing penetrations.
- Sewer scope. A camera goes down the main drain line from the house to the city tap. Worth it on older homes — clay and cast-iron lines age badly — and on any lot with mature trees, because roots find drain joints like they were paid to. A general inspector can run water down every drain, but only a camera tells you what the line itself looks like.
- Roof certification. A roofing contractor evaluates the roof and certifies its condition for a stated period. On the flat and low-slope roofs that dominate this market, this matters twice over: it tells you where the coating and drainage actually stand, and some insurers ask for it before writing a policy on an older flat roof. If the general inspection flagged ponding or a tired coating, a certification visit is the natural next step — our monsoon roof prep guide explains what a healthy flat roof should look like going into storm season.
- Thermal imaging. An infrared camera picks up temperature differences that can indicate moisture behind stucco or drywall, missing insulation, or overheating electrical components. Most useful when there’s a specific suspicion — a stain, a musty smell, stucco cracking near a canale — rather than as a blanket scan of a dry desert house.
- Pool and spa inspection. Only relevant if the house has one, but if it does, don’t skip it. Pool equipment, plumbing, and shell condition sit outside most general inspectors’ scope, and desert sun is brutal on pool surfaces and pump equipment alike.
Deciding by House Age and Type
You don’t need every add-on on every house. A rough decision framework for the Borderland:
- Almost every house here: the termite/WDI report. The risk is universal enough, and the report cheap enough relative to the damage, that skipping it is rarely the smart economy.
- Older homes, mature neighborhoods, big trees: add the sewer scope. Think of the established areas of Mesilla, central Las Cruces, or El Paso’s older neighborhoods — anywhere the trees are taller than the house.
- Flat or low-slope roof of unknown coating age: add the roof certification, especially if your insurer is asking questions or the general inspection noted ponding stains or parapet cracking.
- Signs of moisture or a specific worry: thermal imaging, targeted at the suspect area.
- Newer tract home, young trees, pitched shingle roof: you can often stop at the general inspection plus the termite report — and put the savings toward the 11th-month warranty inspection instead.
If you’re not sure what the general inspection should cover in the first place, start with our guide to what a home inspection should cover on a Borderland home — the add-ons make more sense once you know where the base inspection stops.
Sequencing During Your Option or Due-Diligence Period
Your option period (Texas) or due-diligence window (however your New Mexico contract structures it) is a countdown clock, and the add-ons have to fit inside it. The sequence that works:
- Book the general inspection immediately — the day the contract is executed, not the day you get around to it. Everything else keys off its findings.
- Schedule the near-certain add-ons in parallel. If you already know you want the termite report, don’t wait for the general report to order it. Pest companies and inspectors are used to coordinating same-day or back-to-back visits.
- Hold the conditional add-ons for the findings. Sewer scope on the fence? Roof certification a maybe? Let the general report make the call — then book within a day, because specialty contractors’ calendars won’t bend to your deadline.
- Leave runway at the end. You want the last few days of the window for reading reports, getting repair bids, and negotiating — not for waiting on a camera truck.
Using the Findings: Repairs vs. Credits
An add-on report is a negotiating document, and there are two basic ways to use it. You can ask the seller to make repairs before closing, or ask for a credit or price reduction and handle the work yourself after closing.
The honest local take: for anything you care about being done right — roof coating work, termite treatment, drain line repair — the credit is usually the better ask. A seller ordering repairs on a house they’re leaving has every incentive to take the cheapest bid and no incentive to supervise the work. Take the credit, then hire your own contractor and watch the job get done properly. Our guide on how to vet a contractor in New Mexico and Texas walks through exactly how to pick that person. Reserve the “seller repairs it” route for items that must be resolved before the loan can close, or where the seller has an established relationship with a reputable specialist.
Either way, negotiate from the report’s language, not from fear. A finding is leverage when it’s specific: what was observed, what a specialist says it takes to correct, and what that work costs in a written bid.
Who Performs What
Buyers often assume the home inspector does all of this. Usually not. The general inspector performs the base inspection, and some also offer thermal imaging. The termite/WDI report comes from a licensed pest control professional. The sewer scope comes from a plumber or a dedicated scoping service. The roof certification comes from a roofing contractor. Pool inspections come from pool service companies or inspectors with specific pool training.
That’s not a flaw in the system — you want the specialist’s eye on the specialist’s problem. Many inspectors will coordinate the whole package for you, which is worth asking about when you book. On credentials: Texas licenses home inspectors through TREC, so El Paso-side buyers can verify a license directly. In New Mexico, ask about credentials and certifications such as ASHI or InterNACHI, and ask each specialty contractor about their own trade licensing.
Not sure which add-ons your particular house calls for? Visit our home inspections page for Las Cruces and El Paso and request a quote — describe the house, and get a straight answer about what’s worth paying for before your option clock starts ticking.