When you buy a house, you buy all of the good stuff, such as the great view, the easy commute, the proximity to shopping, etc. And you buy all of the bad stuff as well. The key is to make sure that you are buying very little bad stuff, or at least manageable bad stuff. Two prime examples of really bad stuff are leaking underground oil tanks and contaminated drinking water wells. Let’s start with underground tanks first. If the house that you want to buy has a buried tank, at a minimum you want to know that the tank is not leaking. Leaking tanks can cost a small fortune to clean up. And you are interested in buying a home, not a nightmare. You might want to have the tank tested before your purchase. If the tank tests fine, than there is a good chance there is no problem. I said a good chance –not a guarantee. Why? Because tank tests are not always perfect. And some tank tests can take a tank that is about to leak and weaken it -- so that it might be more inclined to leak when you move in. If you are still concerned, see if a repeat test will be allowed to learn whether the tank passes a second time. All of this will only tell you about tanks currently being used. You still may wish to find out if there were prior tanks or prior leaks and if so, how were they handled? The current property owner may not even know the answer to these questions. Which means you may have to check city hall for any records. If that is a dead end, you can hire people to use magnetic devices to search for buried tanks. That practice seems to be increasing –and may make sense. If you are convinced that there are no tank problems –that might be end of the story. If you are unsure – your lawyer may have to negotiate some protection for you. You may even insist that the tank is removed before closing. But watch what you ask for –that can also be a deal killer. Well water issues are also very important. If your new home has a drinking water well, you need to be sure that it produces a steady supply of drinkable water. Let’s start with the steady supply requirement. Some wells do not uniformly produce enough water. That may have to do with the water source, with drought conditions, or with too many people competing for the same water. As to water quality, many wells are contaminated. Only a competent well water analysis, testing for appropriate constituents based on where you live, can answer this questions. Before you buy, you must have a qualified professional ensure that the well will supply enough, quality water. If there is any question, have your attorney negotiate a fix to this problem before you close. In both cases, I like asking the seller to sign disclosure forms. If the seller will not do so, that might be a red flag and you might want to move on. Should repairs or replacements be required, you need to make sure that the work has cured the problem before you close. For this reason, you may not want to close on the day of the work, because that may not provide enough time to determine if the problem has been solved. Buying homes with wells and tanks can very easily and safely be accomplished. However, you and your lawyer need to be sure that both are in perfect working order before title transfers. Otherwise, your lawyer needs to negotiate a good resolution before you take over the house.

The information provided in this column is written by Stuart Lieberman,a practicing environmental attorney, and is for general information purposes only. It is not legal advice and should not be used in place of legal advice.

Stuart Lieberman, Esq., and IRED.Com, Inc., will not accept any responsibilty for any reliance on the information in this column or any damages whatsoever resulting from reading this column.