Underground oil tank

Member since 2019 · 16 posts · 2 votes

Hello!
If there is an underground oil tank, is the seller legally responsible to remove it before the buyer acquires the property? Or can it be negotiated within the contract? This property is in Connecticut.

Thank you!

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Jonathan GreeneBusiness Member

Real Estate Consultant · Madison, NJ · Member since 2016 · 6k+ posts · 7k+ votes

They are not legally required to remove the tank, but you should not buy without that as a condition unless it is an REO and you are aware of the risks. It can be negotiated. Most on-market sellers in NJ know they have to remove them or the property will never sell. Here, removal is $1,800 range and if there is a drop of contamination it will run up another $7,500. It it hits water it goes up and up.

An oil tank that is underground and in use is actually much safer, in general, than one that is out of use and buried. In use you would know from the consumption if there was a large leak. When it was decommissioned and left there you don't know they did the process. Sometimes they weren't cleaned and filled with sand which eventually compresses together and can seap out.

In short, there are a number of ways this can go wrong. I know a lot about them if you decide to go forward and want advice, but the short version is just require it as part of you buy but your language should read to the effect of:

"Seller will have the underground oil tank removed by a trained and licensed company and provide notice from the township that there was no contamination. If the tank does not pass the town's requirements and/or there is any contamination, seller will be responsible for cleaning up all contaminated areas and getting a report from DEP."

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Lawrence P. Schnapf
New York, NY · Member since 2019 · 155 posts · 58 votes
6y
yes- no. 2 fuel oil may be used but there are also lots of No. 6 fuel oil for heating oil elsewhere in the northeast.
Home heating oil tanks are NOT federally-regulated. as i said, the extent of regulation varies with the state depending on size of the tank. small home heating oil tanks also dont have to be registered like gasoline tanks from gas stations or larger oil heating tanks that service apartment buildings or commercial buildings.
the point is that regulation of home heating oil tanks is not as uniform as gasoline or diesel tanks used to fuel vehicles or used to heat large buildings. I'm an environmental lawyer and am quite familiar with requirements across the country.
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