Title V Inspections for Buying or Selling a Home

What is a Title V inspection?

If you are buying or selling a house with a septic system in Massachusetts, stop what you’re doing and schedule an inspection! The code that specifies how to install, use and maintain your septic system on the state level is called Title V.

What’s the rush?

This Title V inspection can hold up the sale of your property if you don’t get it in time. While the inspection itself usually only takes a few hours, the town and state licensing takes time to process. Plus, if the inspection turns up a necessary repair or replacement, you have 30 days to schedule and complete the work to turn your conditionally passed system to one that is Title V compliant. Cities and towns also have their own septic system requirements, sometime more stringent than the state’s.

If you are purchasing or selling a property that already has a septic system installed, having the system pass inspection ahead of time can avoid holding up the sale. If you get in front of the scheduling, you won’t have to worry about the potential domino effect of delays.

How much does a Title V inspection cost?

The out-of-pocket cost for Title V inspection and associated paperwork can vary from hundreds to thousands of dollars, depending on what, if any, repairs need to be made in order to make the system compliant. The fewer the repairs and modification required to pass, the lower the cost.

Even if your system requires repairs, modifications necessary for a conditionally passed system to become Title V compliant usually cost much less than what it would to completely replace the system under a failed inspection.

What does the inspection include?

A Title V inspection gauges the relative safety of your system. Can it currently function within the parameters protecting the environment and public health? In order to find out, the inspection includes locating and assessing the main elements of the system in relation to the water table.

Mike starts the process of the Title V or local septic system inspection before he even enters your home, by visiting the requisite state and local offices to acquire the necessary paperwork and schedule the assessment. Since many municipalities are understaffed and overbooked, they may be scheduling inspections months out, you want to start the process as soon as possible to get on the schedule.

On the property the process includes:

• locating the tank and retrieving samples and measurements
• locating the distribution box or the next component
• running water through the system to determine its capacity

Excavating is not always necessary, depending on the depth of your system. No matter the extent of the excavation or necessary repairs, Mike from Devine will be there to explain the process every step of the way.

Who’s responsible for obtaining the Title V?

The property owner is responsible for arranging and paying for the inspection. So if you are looking to sell a property with a septic system, the sooner you schedule your Title V inspection, the better. You can transfer the responsibility to the buyer if you both agree in writing before the title transfer.

How can I prepare for the inspection?

You do not need to be present for the inspection. Your Realtor or another representative can be onsite to let your septic service provider and the state or local official, on the property. Making sure the water is turned on, and that the inspectors will have access to the basement can also help with the process.

Who can administer an inspection?

Only MassDEP-approved system inspectors like Mike at Devine Septic can conduct system inspections. If conducted by any other individual, system inspections are invalid and not compliance with Title V.

How long is a Title V inspection good for?

Since the property owner is responsible for organizing the inspection, a delay or required repairs can hold up the sale. And it lasts for several years, so it makes sense to get one at the beginning of the process. Inspections associated with a property sale generally are valid for two years even if the property is sold again during that time. It’s good for three years if a system is pumped annually, one more reason to schedule regular maintenance for your septic system.

Passing a Title V inspection or a town’s septic system inspection does not mean that your system is necessarily running at peak condition, or that it won’t fail unexpectedly at a later date.

When do you need a Title V inspection?

The requirements can seem complex but here’s a break-down. A septic system in Massachusetts requires a title V inspection:

For single-family stand-alone homes

• Within two years before the sale (or up to six months afterward if weather prevents the inspection)
• When there is a proposed change to the building that requires a permit, or change in the footprint of the building

For shared systems 

• Every three years 

For large systems (with a design flow of 10,000–15,000 gallons per day)

•  On a specified basin schedule

In addition, you will need a Title V Inspection 

• When the property is divided or combined with another
• Any time the MassDEP or local Board of Health orders one

Are you buying or selling a home with a septic system? Call Mike to schedule your Title V inspection.

Take Title V off your To-Do List

As a MassDEP-approved individual authorized to conduct system inspections, Mike at Devine Plumbing is no stranger to Title V. His advice? “The first thing you should do if you are selling your house is schedule a Title V.”

Some exceptions to the Title V requirements include:

• Transfers between certain family members
• Refinancing or taking of a security interest in a property
• Appointment or change of a guardian or trustee
• Any other change of ownership that does not introduce any new parties
• If the owner or buyer has signed an agreement to upgrade the system within two years

Download the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency guidelines for when you need a Title V for the most up-to-date info.