To sell this stinking rat hole, I mean house because we have rats?

[RedWineAllMine]

So to cut a long story short, purchased first house a year ago, have since discovered the bastards that sold it to us never told us of the rat problem. I found rat droppings tonight in living room, and knawed pieces of wooden coving and doors throughout the house. I have been away so noticed it when I came back. I have just paid £99 for the council pest control, they will be here within the next 2 days. I know it's rats because we caught one in the loft not long ago, but laid down poison and that was the end of that until now....
So, told my Partner we are selling or I'm leaving him once council have sorted the rats. I can't live here.

The homebuyers report should have had a sentence in it somewhere, stating the bleeding obvious, that there is srtex on the walls, then warning to get it checked for asbestos before attempting to remove it.

Heck, our report said that the house needs a lick of paint!

Just googled water bucket trap. It looks like the world's worst soup.

Sorry OP, we had a mouse infestation once and it was incredibly stressful. I hope it's over soon for you.

I posted last week about my house buying remorse and I really feel for you op this sounds horrendous hope it’s resolved and you’re able to move ASAP sounds so stressful

God this reminds me of the time we viewed a house which had been repossessed and was lying empty.

It was in a really sought-after area and tbh I was so excited when it became available I’d have probably bought it without viewing it. Thank god for my sensible DH 😬

We viewed the rooms and it was lovely. Then we viewed the box room at the back of the house.

Carpet. Of. Dead. Wasps.

I’m not kidding. There were thousands of them. I am terrified of wasps. It took everything in me not to run screaming from that horror house

Redwineallmine, you must have worked hard to buy your house. Everyone deserves their house to feel like a home. It should be a sanctuary to relax in and look forward to going home to. It's totally unfair of your partner to expect you to be there in the middle of an infestation when he's not even around to experience it. This situation would drive me insane. How can you enjoy somewhere that stinks and feel ashamed of the lingering smell? Let alone have visitors over. You don't deserve any of this. This is not living, it is surviving. I hope you and your partner can have a serious chat about the future. Possibly could you stay somewhere else where you can relax and then renovate the place when he is back? Hope you get it sorted, I really feel for you

I've spoken to him, he has agreed to sort the house when he's back, starting with ripping up the carpets. I don't care if I'm walking on wooden boards, as long as we are getting rid of the smell and doing something I'm not bothered. To be far the smell isn't that bad, it hits you when you walk in, then I can't smell it. But I can when I go outside, I can smell it when I'm shopping on my clothes etc, so it's getting on everything. We have had many visitors around, never complained of a smell, but I am a paranoid they can smell it but don't say anything. I can only describe it as a foisty charity shop smell. Bizarre how it's going on clothes etc and anything in the room. I enjoy being home, I haven't left here, but I just wish my first home was a beautiful one, one I could be proud of. I'm definitely embarrassed of my first home.

Pickachew there is nothing on the report stating it, I've looked. It's more like a drainage & land report that the house is on, hardly anything to do with the house on it.

Of course I will mind walking on floor boards if I see tiny feet below...😩. They are in the floorboards in the bedroom above the living room, I hear them scuttering around at night. My partner says I'm over reacting about it all and he doesn't think the situation is bad. He said once council man has been, we will lay rat stuff to prevent further infestations. He doesn't understand I don't want to live in a potential rat house full stop. My next door but 1 neighbour has heard something in her house, woman opposite me has mice. It's just a bad infected area with them.

And tbh, I don't think we will ever be rid of them. I think future ones will occur.

There's potential for rats and mice to move in just about anywhere. You just need to secure your home from them and take reasonable precautions like leaving some poison down. You could move house though and find exactly the same problem.

Actually I don't think it's wise to lift the carpets n not have any to replace it, because I would be opening up the flood gates to hell wouldn't I?

I am not sure that it is possible to be sure you will never ever have a rat infestation.

We've had them a couple of times, but in both cases council pest control treatment was effective.

Bin bags of rubbish or people dropping fast food containers and having fast food shops can all contribute to rats. We've certainly had them in our compost bins too. However, normally they like being near their food supply - which is at the end of the garden - and have 'runs'.

A bigger infestation may take a bit longer to deal with - but I'm sure that professional help should help with sorting everything out.

I think lots of us have the fantasy of a perfect home. But the reality is that houses will sometimes have a mouse or a rat problem. Or roofs leak. Something will go wrong and it will have to be fixed.

I live next to a park, do you think that will have something to do with it? Maybe I'm over reacting, and just let the council do their 3 visits and see what happens, try not to see things so bleak?

OP we had a rat problem a couple of years ago and I felt just like you. Deeply upset and just so creeped out and disturbed. I felt dirty. It was horrible. The council sorted it out, and after cementing up a couple of holes in ours and next door's brickwork, plus their poison, we sorted it. It's horrendous now but once it's sorted it's sorted and you'll feel like a new woman. Hang in there you can still get your house lovely.

I can understand why they didn't tell us, but still fuming that they didn't if that makes any sense yes it does make sense, sorry if my tone was agressive, of course your situation is difficult

When you sell will you tell all prospective purchasers?

Aroundtheworld no I won't, would never get rid of it if I did. I since discovered it's not up to sellers to disclose the information

Ok, I dunno if this will work, but you sound desperate so worth a try. Do you have a cat-owning friend? If you do, and the cat uses a litter box, ask for some of the pee soaked litter! Place some of it in the spaces where the rats get in. It's a bit grim I know, but the cat piss smell should (hopefully) freak them out and get them to fuck.

And my mum swears by one of those alarms that emits a high pitched sound (obviously inaudible to us).

Please avoid using poison. The rats will die under you floor / in your walls and will stink. Then you'll also have a blue bottle problem on top of rars tgat have yet to eat tge poison. also, any rats that die outside and eaten by wildlife, such as owls, will in turn poison the wildlife.

Cats aren't always hunters. Do you know anyone with a Jack Russell? They are amazing at hunting rats.

I know you've said you're allergic to cats but could you be around a Devon Rex? My friend had one growing up. They have no coat.

Also for the smell try getting some damp rid from the supermarket or hardware store.

We had mice and found random droppings around downstairs. Very upset much stressing out. We had wooden floors in the kitchen diner and hallway. Before bed we sprinkled a very fine layer of I think flour across the floors. Next morning there were little tracks in the flour leading to under the kitchen units near the back door.

Ripped off the kickboards etc and found a hole! Filled it in and that was the end of the mice coming in the house.

Good luck

It’s actually very difficult to get rid of rats. Get the absolute fuck out of that house and don’t look back.

I really feel for you! We had/have a lone mouse that visits here and there but we never have food out after finding three a few years ago. We could hear them in the roof after insulation was put in. I just wonder how you bought a house you didn't want when your other half doesn't even live there! But I guess you can't change the past so what's the point, lesson learnt eh?

I would sell it. It seems too big a job with the rat problem, then all the bits that need doing in the house. It isn't worth it, especially when you don't like where you live and it's far from what you like. I say sell and move especially before kids as you'll want to be in an area you like too. Just be matter of fact with him and say it's an eye opener and there's no point you being far from people or the area's you prefer when he works away anyway! This is coming from someone who moved to be with be partner. It's hard after kids to move again. Save the stress.

However if you decide to stay, I wouldn't rip up the carpets without a plan B which you've already figured. Floorboards, what if they come through them? Would be awful. Also did you say you have a cat flap? Are you sure they are not coming through that? I'd close it all up.

I've lived in various parts of the UK and mice are everywhere. They're not restricted to cities or countryside but they're just about! Probably the same with rats. Food and water needs to be sweeped up or dried up. I read yesterday that the sink needs to have that plug thing so food doesn't go down it as rats eat the crumbs and multiply.

So if you stay do find all holes and block them once the poison starts working and they leave your house. Then you'll need to make a huge plan for your house which I think will only work if you move out for a few days nearby and do as others have suggested i.e. remove all carpets, walls etc and scrub everything with bleach or whatever and do it every day, block holes etc and have new carpets, curtains the lot. It is so expensive hence saying just move out especially if you're not settled there and don't see yourself settled there in the future. Your oh doesn't even live there as much as you do, he doesn't need to have the bigger say.

We had/have a lone mouse

No, you had mice.