Offer accepted on a place with well and septic after a lifetime on city water — what do I insist on before closing?

Insist on a septic inspection where the tank is pumped and the lids are opened, not a visual walkover of the lawn. A proper inspection looks at the baffles, the sludge and scum layers, runs water through the house to see how the field takes it, and often includes a dye test. A visual pass tells you the grass is green. That is the single inspection where the difference between the cheap version and the real version is thousands later.

Honest list of the trade-offs since you asked for pros and cons. No monthly water or sewer bill and often better tasting water; against that, you own every repair, a power cut means no water, and you are responsible for testing that a utility would otherwise do for you. Set aside a maintenance fund from day one and treat it as the bill you are not paying. Over ten years mine has still come out cheaper than the town supply my sister pays for.

Check the county or town records for permits on both systems before closing. Ours showed the septic had been replaced eleven years earlier, which the seller had genuinely forgotten, and the permit told us the tank size and the field layout. It is free information and it took one email.

On the well side, ask for three things: the driller's log if it exists, a water test panel appropriate to your region, and a flow or yield test so you know the well can actually keep up with a household. Which contaminants matter is regional — bacteria and nitrate everywhere, and depending where you are, arsenic, radon in water, or manganese are worth including — so ask the local health department what they recommend for your area rather than buying a generic kit. Also get the pump's age if anyone knows it.