Arizona requires the seller to have the septic system inspected before the property changes hands. We do that inspection, pump the tank while we're there, and get the report back to you in time for escrow.
Tell us the address and your closing date — we'll respond the same business day.
the inspection must fall within six months before transfer
Arizona puts the obligation on the seller, not the buyer
inspection and required pump-out done together
Tucson based, covering Vail, Marana, Sahuarita & the Foothills
Most of our work is one thing: getting sellers through the ADEQ transfer inspection without the closing slipping.
The inspection Arizona requires before your property can change hands, with the written report the buyer has to receive.
Learn more →Nearly every transfer inspection needs the tank pumped so the interior can be examined. We do both in the same visit.
Learn more →If the inspection turns something up, you need it fixed and documented before closing. We quote in writing off the report.
Learn more →Predictable scheduling, reports your file can absorb, and straight answers when a listing has a septic surprise.
Learn more →If you are selling a home on a septic system anywhere in Arizona, the state requires an inspection before the property transfers. The rule is Arizona Administrative Code R18-9-A316, it has been in force statewide since July 2006, and it is written as an obligation on the transferor, which in plain language means the seller.
The requirement has three moving parts. First, the seller must retain a qualified inspector and have the onsite wastewater facility inspected within six months before the transfer. Second, the seller must give the completed report to the buyer before the transfer happens. Third, after closing, the buyer files a Notice of Transfer with the regulating authority, generally within fifteen days.
People hear "state requirement" and assume there must be a long list of exemptions. There is not. ADEQ's own guidance states that only one exemption exists: a facility that was permitted but never actually put into service. There is no carve-out for single family homes, no carve-out for a sale between family members, no carve-out for a newer system. If there is a septic system and the property is transferring, the inspection applies.
That is unusual, and worth knowing if you have sold property in another state. Massachusetts, for example, exempts transfers between spouses, between parent and child, refinancing and divorce. Arizona exempts none of that.
Arizona does not publish a list of approved inspectors. Not ADEQ, not Pima County, not Maricopa. You are told to retain a qualified inspector, and then you are on your own to find one. That is why you are reading this page instead of a pamphlet that came with a notice.
It also means you are free to choose. Nobody assigns you a vendor, and you are not obligated to use whoever your agent happens to mention first.
What Tucson sellers and agents ask us most.
Yes, if the property is on a septic or other onsite wastewater system. A.A.C. R18-9-A316 requires it statewide before transfer, and the obligation sits with you as the seller.
The seller. The rule puts the duty on the transferor. Buyers sometimes agree to split it as part of a negotiation, but the legal obligation is yours.
Plan on roughly $725 to $1,375 all in. The inspection is a few hundred; the rest is the pump-out, which almost always has to happen so the tank interior can be inspected, plus digging if the lids are buried. Full breakdown in the cost guide.
Nearly always. An inspector cannot evaluate the baffles, the tank walls or the outlet without seeing them, and you cannot see them through a full tank. There are narrow circumstances where pumping can be skipped, but treat it as part of the job when you budget.
The field work is a few hours. Schedule it as soon as you have a contract, not in the last week. If something fails, you will want repair time inside the escrow period rather than a closing extension. See selling with a septic system.
Only if the transfer happens within six months of the inspection date. If escrow has dragged past that window, the inspection has to be redone.
You repair or alter the system, which may require a permit from the regulating authority, and the work gets documented. It is common and it is survivable. What is not survivable is finding out nine days before closing. See what fails an inspection.
Arizona requires it before the property changes hands · Reports turned around fast · Serving all of Pima County
Call (520) 389-5764