Should I get a septic inspection and additional questions

Question

A handful of items I'm curious about on this house purchase that I'm adding to my portfolio at a 50-80K discount:

-The house has a septic system. Should I get a septic inspection as part of the purchase? First time dealing with a septic system on a purchase.

-The seller wants to remove the clause that they will clean the house and remove trash/rubbish from the house. They left the clause that they will take their personal belongings. Considering the deep discount, I figure I'll pay 1K at worst to remove trash they leave behind. Thoughts?

-There is an easement for the neighbors driveway that runs through this property.

-That same neighbor has been paying this sellers well fees for a while. Should I get an agreement in place before closing as far as maintenance fee split for the well?

Tyler Eastburn · Answer

I live in a some what rural area. Spetics are at almost every house. ALWAYS  get it inspected and it helps to know local rules , maintenance and  such regarding septic systems if you are going to own a property with one.

Theresa Harris · Answer

@Jack B. Get the septic inspected.  I bought a place and had the inspection done.  Turns out the pipes were blocked with roots from a tree and it was an old system.  The seller paid close to $10K to replace the entire system before we closed the deal.

Colleen F. · Answer

Inspect it.  Many years ago we bought a house in Az  and it had a septic certificate. What we didnt know was that document only meant it had a septic not even that it was pumped out. We only found out when it backed up. So find out the  laws in your state and Know what they mean.

What are well fees ?  Is it a private community water system or a private well?

Quito Keutla · Answer

@Jack B.  Get a septic inspection, I just did a deal in Seattle and found the septic needed to do some repairs the bill came up to 10k which the seller paid, otherwise that would of been on us. Septic can be expensive, Happy Investing!!

John Woodrich · Answer

Going to message you.

Lee Bell · Answer

Inspect it, otherwise you don't know what you bought.

Brianne H. · Answer

@Jack B.

YES, get a septic inspection. We had an offer on a house to be a primary residence, turns out that surprise! It doesn't actually have a field, and that it was open discharge, which is a big no-no. When it was first put in, it was acceptable, but since the property had then been subdivided, all property lines were too close for it to continue to be legal. Did I mention that it also drained into a wetland reserve area? We walked away and saved ourselves probably 15k extra on having to put a new field in, nevermind what state the tank or pump(s) might have been in.

If you think 1k would cover trash removal, then go for it. In my area though it would probably be a lot more, depending on what they leave behind. Assume the worst - junky old cars, mounds of trash, inside and out, hoarder-like conditions - if these are a possibility, just make sure you account for accurate removal costs.

Likely no big deal for the easement of the neighbour's driveway. What well fees though? I would talk to the neighbour and figure out what the deal is with the well - who's property is it on, why is he paying the fees, and who pays for what should the pump need replacing, well needs to be shocked, etc.

Mike McCarthy · Answer

I would ALWAYS get a septic inspection. It’s $400 or so well spent - and could save easily $10-30K. They are not cheap to replace.

I’d have no issue with trash, as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into.

And tenants? Part of your contract is that the house is sold empty (regardless of trash), right? You probably don’t want to start with an eviction.

As for the well, I’d talk to the neighbor. As long as they seem reasonable, and don’t have any documentation now, I’d buy and put my own agreement in place with them. Doesn’t sound like a huge deal... but it does mean more water usage, who pays for the well pump replacement when it dies, etc. Not enough to stop the deal, but you want to know what you’re getting into.

Good luck!

Jack B. · Answer

I bumped it after three hours, not two, since it seemed to have gone to the back pages and no one was responding.

I'm in Seattle, WA not MN so MN rules don't apply to me. I don't think it's required here but I figured I'd err on the side of caution and get one done unless people here told me that it's a waste of money to do so, etc.

Bill B. · Answer

@John Woodrich

Hey john, have you not seen realtors representing buyers require it? I have a pair of cabins on eagle lake in big lake that I was going to list last year and realtor wouldn’t list it until after I had a signed inspection. (I only spend a few weeks a year  in MN farming so I’ve used it 20 days in the last 20 years.)

The few authorized inspection firms were too busy last sept/October so I’m planning on trying again this spring.