Shared septic system (agent, property tax, house hunting, homeowners)

[jiminnm]

As one who has had a septic system in two different houses over the last 30 years, I vote an emphatic no. We know what goes in the septic, how much, when it was cleaned out, etc. We have had no issues with either septic.

[dontaskwhy]

I will go out on a limb and would have to guess that the 2 people who voted "Yes" in this poll have either never had a septic tank or have only had one for a short time. I have lived in a home with septic for many years and never had a problem, but I have had many friends who have had issues that required fixes more than $1K and up.

[heySkippy]

Originally Posted by dontaskwhy

I will go out on a limb and would have to guess that the 2 people who voted "Yes" in this poll have either never had a septic tank or have only had one for a short time. I have lived in a home with septic for many years and never had a problem, but I have had many friends who have had issues that required fixes more than $1K and up.

$1K and up isn't the end of the world. If I was looking at potentially someday having to spend a fraction of one percent of what I paid for the house to remediate a septic problem, well, I wouldn't automatically let that sour a deal.

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by heySkippy

$1K and up isn't the end of the world. If I was looking at potentially someday having to spend a fraction of one percent of what I paid for the house to remediate a septic problem, well, I wouldn't automatically let that sour a deal.

Could be.

The poll is actually meaningless when considering the more detailed input the OP has received.

I am not wholly comfortable with the prospect, for sure, but exploring to determine if a proper and acceptable deal can be reached between the parties, and finding that it may be possible, why not?

Never say, "Never."

[dontaskwhy]

Originally Posted by heySkippy

$1K and up isn't the end of the world. If I was looking at potentially someday having to spend a fraction of one percent of what I paid for the house to remediate a septic problem, well, I wouldn't automatically let that sour a deal.

Keep in mind that my $1K number was a lowball guess, perhaps only to pump out the tank and no need to repair anything.

I sold my farm back in 2006 and haven't had septic once I moved into the city limits. Depending on the situation and the location, a new drain field or a replacement tank could cost several $$ instead. My city no longer allows septic to be installed or replaced with a new tank/leach field within city limits. It must be municipal sewage and water where available. Of course, YMMV.

[dontaskwhy]

Originally Posted by MikeJaquish

Never say, "Never."

I will gladly say "Never" when it comes to sharing a single septic tank. Environmentally speaking, septic tanks/fields can be very destructive.

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by dontaskwhy

I will gladly say "Never" when it comes to sharing a single septic tank. Environmentally speaking, septic tanks/fields can be very destructive.

Okey-Dokey.

[Diana Holbrook]

Originally Posted by dontaskwhy

I will go out on a limb and would have to guess that the 2 people who voted "Yes" in this poll have either never had a septic tank or have only had one for a short time. I have lived in a home with septic for many years and never had a problem, but I have had many friends who have had issues that required fixes more than $1K and up.

I didn’t vote yes or no… I’m a maybe, It depends :-)

And I’ve never had anything but septic tanks. I think that’s why I’m not particularly afraid of them.

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by Diana Holbrook

I didn’t vote yes or no… I’m a maybe, It depends :-)

And I’ve never had anything but septic tanks. I think that’s why I’m not particularly afraid of them.

Yeah, my vote is "Never say, 'Never.'" I am not wild about septic tanks, having seen too many failures. But, people let them go bad or make them go bad. I do tell people that I like College Boys to bring me my water and take it away when I am done with it.
But, in the right circumstances, I would not quail at the concept of on-site septic tanks.

People too readily unleash "Never" without analysis.
A couple of examples:
"I would NEVER buy a house with polybutylene water lines."
"I would NEVER buy a house with aluminum branch circuit wiring."
The fixes in many markets are a drop in the bucket, a very small percentage of the purchase price, and in a dearth of inventory, I WOULD consider either. Heck, we are in a polybutylene-plumbed house for 22 years without issue.
I expect it would sell for ~$600,000+/- and a full, turn-key replumb would be in the max $15,000-$18,000 range.
Hardly a reason not to own it, as it is very suitable otherwise in features, and location, location, location.
Eagerness to say, "Never," would have put us back in a 2002 market with very little suitable inventory. We had given up at the time.

The OP's family member needs to weigh what is, and what is achievable, in a torrid local market.
If acceptable parameters of a deal can be reached, "Why not?"

[heySkippy]

I never really thought about it, but we've used shared septic systems in pretty much every campground we've ever stayed at. I can only imagine what the campground owners must deal with over the years.