Well water at rental?

Chicago, Illinois
General Real Estate Investing
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Well water at rental?

Jay GandhiPro Member
Rental Property Investor · IL · Member since 2022 · 5 posts · 5 votes

Hi,

I am evaluating a 2-unit in Lake county, IL and notice that their water source is Private Well Water. Does anyone have experience with this alternative water sources other than municipal/village water? Would this be a deal breaker or difficult to manage issue with long term rentals? Anything I need to keep in mind or worry about or factor in my expenses during deal analysis? 

Thanks in advance!

- Jay.

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Bruce WoodruffPro Member
Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
1y

I have had several properties that run on wells, still have one. As long as the water is tested and comes back with a healthy report, you are good-to-go. 

Even if there are problems with water purity (like Arsenic), you can still be fine, you'll just need to install a water filter.

Also be aware that you will have to do the occasional repair. Most common is one of the pumps, but they last for a while once they're replaced. 

Wells are actually preferable in some ways, like if there is a power outage that shuts down city water, you can still run your well on a genny.....

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  • Matthew Paul
    Severna Park, MD · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    1y

    Depends on the type of well and how deep and the recovery rate .  

    Hand dug  , no

    Driven well  maybe 

    Drilled well , not a problem

    1Reply
  • Bruce WoodruffPro Member
    Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
    1y

    I have had several properties that run on wells, still have one. As long as the water is tested and comes back with a healthy report, you are good-to-go. 

    Even if there are problems with water purity (like Arsenic), you can still be fine, you'll just need to install a water filter.

    Also be aware that you will have to do the occasional repair. Most common is one of the pumps, but they last for a while once they're replaced. 

    Wells are actually preferable in some ways, like if there is a power outage that shuts down city water, you can still run your well on a genny.....

    3Reply
  • David Krulac
    Mechanicsburg, PA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    1y

    would want drilled well, would want to know the depth, age, and yield (gallons per minute).  But we have several properties with well, have had to replace the pump, which I've found last 20 years or more, but we never had a well go dry.  We have drilled new wells on vacant lots, and once had to drill a new well at a house.  To conserve water consumption would use flow restrictors, low flow showers, and low capacity toilets. 

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    • Bruce WoodruffPro Member
      Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
      1y
      Quote from @David Krulac:

      would want drilled well, would want to know the depth, age, and yield (gallons per minute).  But we have several properties with well, have had to replace the pump, which I've found last 20 years or more, but we never had a well go dry.  We have drilled new wells on vacant lots, and once had to drill a new well at a house.  To conserve water consumption would use flow restrictors, low flow showers, and low capacity toilets. 

      "would want drilled well, would want to know the depth, age, and yield (gallons per minute). But we have several properties with well, have had to replace the pump, which I've found last 20 years or more, but we never had a well go dry."

      This is worth checking. How large is the aquafer? How do the neighbor's wells fare? Nothing will destroy a property's value like having a well run dry.....or even a reduced gpm rate. 

      I have not had one of my wells run dry, but have seen it happen in Arizona. It is a mess. Trucking in water, or having it delivered, is no fun at all.

      So check with the City/County and ask neighbors, they will all be happy to tell you about the size of the aquafer and the various flow rates.
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  • Paul De Luca
    Real Estate Agent · Chicago, IL · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    1y

    @Jay Gandhi

    Like @Bruce Woodruff said, be sure to get an inspection. Below is the language regarding a well/septic inspection from the multi-board 8.0 contract so you could use that when submitting offers.

    2Reply
  • Bruce WoodruffPro Member
    Contractor/Investor/Consultant · San Diego / Phoenix · Member since 2021 · 12k+ posts · 15k+ votes
    1y

    Like @Paul De Luca said, put it in writing. It should already be in the State legal contract somewhere. Generally, in my experiences, the buyer must pay for well inspections if desired. But you could negotiate it differently if you want to.

    And I would get a Well Contractor to do a thorough inspection. And a low gpm rate like 5 gpm is scary. If that drops a little, you're in trouble. I would aim for at least 10-15 gpm. As an example, my last place had 34gpm...

    2Reply
  • Alecia LovelessPro Member
    Member since 2019 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    1y

    @Jay Gandhi I have an 8 unit on a well.

    I haven’t had any real problems in the 3 years I’ve owned it.

    It does have a filter on the incoming water supply to the building which must be replaced once a month or we start to see a reduction in flow.

    I believe it’s filters.com that we use to buy the filters and most weeks they run a 20% off sale. A few times a year it’s as much as 35% off and I usually buy a box of 12 filters then. It’s about a $20 cost each month per filter.

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