Buying a Home? What You Don’t Know Could Cost You Thousands

Home Buyers in South Florida generally lean on “home inspection” companies to make a proper evaluation of the property’s internal and external features. The foundation, roofing, electrical, HVAC, and PLUMBING systems are often included on the inspection checklist. However, is your home inspector fully inspecting the sewer system? Plumbing experience and a high-quality sewer inspection camera are absolutely necessary to qualify an inspector to make an accurate evaluation of the sewer lines. If your home inspector does not have these qualifications, request that a professional sewer company perform the sewer inspection.

BUYER BEWARE: If you have not had a professional sewer company perform a video inspection of the home you wish to buy, you CANNOT be sure of the condition of the sewer lines.

Why So Much Emphasis on a Professional Sewer Inspection Prior to a Home Purchase?

Did you know that traditional sewer replacement is comparable in cost to get a new roof, with average prices ranging between $10,000 to as much as $25,000? In addition to that cost is the price to pour back the concrete slab after trenching through your house, to replace tile, to repair drywall, and to make repairs to your yard and to the city-owned street/sidewalk. That being said, most homes in South Florida were built with cast iron sewer pipes, which have a typical lifespan of 25-35 Years in our area. So if the home you are looking at was built prior to 1990, odds are that the sewer system is soon to be in need of replacement/rehabilitation.

A typical home inspection will not include the necessary video inspection of the sewer lines, rather a visual inspection of toilets, sinks, and other fixtures is likely the extent of the inspection. A professional sewer inspection may cost a few hundred dollars for an average single-family home, but that cost is minimal compared to the potential $25,000 repair you might be surprised with if you happen to forgo a professional sewer inspection.

NOTE: Although real-estate agents earn their living by the commission on successful sales, one should never discourage a buyer from having additional inspections for fear of a deal falling through or their commission being lessened due to negotiations on price. This would be unprofessional and show a lack of concern for buyer’s satisfaction with their purchase.

Benefits of Having a Sewer Inspections Before Buying a Home

Have Owner Make Repairs or Request Cash Credit – If your pre-purchase sewer inspection reveals that the sewer lines have deteriorated to the point of having cracks, tree roots intrusion, blockages, channeling, or are back-pitched it would be fair to negotiate with the seller to make the needed repairs prior to your purchase or to credit you the cost of the repairs from the purchase price. The deal may fall through if the seller refuses to make concessions, which may not be such a bad thing if you averted a hefty sewer replacement/repair bill.

Plan For Upcoming Repairs – There is nothing worse than moving into your dream home, making cosmetic renovations such as new flooring, kitchen, bathrooms, and paint, and then having a sewage backup! Remember that replacement of sewer lines conventionally will require trenching through your floors, tearing your walls, and the demolition of bathrooms and kitchens, unless you make repairs with pipelining, a trenchless repair option. How much better it would be to know about the condition of your sewer lines before making renovations!

What Is Involved In a Professional Sewer Video Inspection?

First, the buyer and seller will need to coordinate the inspection with the sewer company. The actual inspection should include a sewer video camera being run through all of the lines in the house including the underground lines and vertical stacks. The pipe is usually accessed via a cleanout, roof vent stack opening, or by pulling a toilet (additional fees typically apply if a toilet must be pulled and replaced to access the lines). If the sewer lines are full of water and debris preventing the inspection, a hydro-jetter may need to be utilized to clear the line typically at an additional fee. The sewer inspection company should provide both the buyer and seller with three things:

1. The Videos – either on a disk, USB, or an online link. (Read more about what a quality sewer video inspection includes).
2. A Report – Each line should have a thorough report as to any cracks, latent cracks, tree roots, pipe separations, low areas, channeling, holes, blockages, amount of scale and corrosion, pest infestation, etc.
3. A Not-to-Scale Line Drawing – During the inspection, the sewer company should provide a not-to-scale map of how the lines run in the home, including any turns/fittings.

The information you receive from a quality sewer inspection should provide you with the necessary information to make an informed decision when purchasing a home.

All in all, if the home you are looking at was built prior to 1990 in South Florida, a sewer inspection is a MUST, due to the typical lifespan of cast-iron pipes. In newer homes, you have less of a risk when forgoing a sewer inspection prior to purchase, but at the end of the day, you can never have too many inspections. Know what you are getting yourself into before buying a home.