FOR REAL ESTATE AGENTS · ARIZONA
What to Ask Before You List
A septic checklist for Arizona real estate agents.
You don’t need to be a septic expert. You need to know what to ask — and when to stop asking and call one. Nine questions. Ask them before the sign goes in the yard.
ASK THE SELLER
QUESTION 01
When was the tank last pumped?
The right answer is “within the last year.” Not “a few years ago.” Not “never had a problem, so never touched it.” A tank that hasn’t been pumped in years isn’t a maintenance item — it’s a pending failure.
→ No records? That’s your cue for an inspection.
QUESTION 02
Is there a riser, or is the lid buried?
A riser is a lid at ground level. No riser means someone digs to find the tank — which costs time and money, on your timeline, not theirs.
→ “I don’t know” is a real answer. Find out before a buyer’s inspector does.
QUESTION 03
Has anyone mentioned a slow bathtub?
Sinks won’t tell you anything — they sit too high. The first real sign of a septic backup shows up at the bathtub, the lowest point running out to the tank.
→ A slow tub is not a plumbing quirk. Take it seriously.
QUESTION 04
How many bedrooms — and how big is the tank?
Tanks are sized on fixture count, not square footage. Most AZ residential tanks run 1,000–2,000 gallons: ~1,000–1,250 for a 3-bed, ~1,500–2,000 for a 5-bed. A home that’s been added onto may have outgrown its tank.
→ Additions and casitas are the red flag here.
QUESTION 05
Have they added anything since the system was installed?
A new bathroom, a casita, a pool house, more people living there. The tank was sized for the original house.
ASK THE SEPTIC COMPANY
QUESTION 06
Do they ask you questions?
A company that knows what it’s doing will ask: where’s the tank, when was it last serviced, is there a riser? A company that asks nothing will show up and explore the yard on your client’s dime.
→ Prescription without diagnosis is malpractice.
QUESTION 07
Will they bill escrow directly?
Most won’t. The ones that do take a real friction point out of your closing — the paperwork goes to escrow and escrow handles it, instead of chasing a seller for a check mid-transaction.
QUESTION 08
Are they NAWT certified?
Ask. It’s a real credential, and it’s verifiable.
ASK YOURSELF
QUESTION 09
Do I have both forms?
In Arizona, a property sale with an onsite system requires both the transfer form and the inspection. Both. It’s a state rule, not just a Maricopa County one.
→ Missing either one is where closings quietly fall apart.
The Honest Bottom Line
If the answers are clean — pumped within the year, riser in place, both forms handled, no slow tub — you’re in good shape.
If any answer is “I don’t know,” that’s not a gap in your knowledge. That’s a system nobody has looked at. And an unlooked-at septic system is the thing that turns into a failed deal, an angry buyer, and a phone call to your broker.
You don’t have to diagnose it. You just have to know when to call someone who can.
QUESTIONS ON A LISTING?
Steel Septic and Environmental — we answer our phones.
Bobby Lanham, NAWT Certified · Cert #19937ITC · 35+ years in Arizona septic.
Want your agents trained on this? We run a free 45-minute session at your office.