Well Inspection and Disclosure for a Home Sale

When a house with a well is being sold, when a lender wants the well located or the water tested, or when you need help understanding the difference between Minnesota's disclosure rules and a voluntary inspection.

• Locating and describing the wells on the property, as far as a site visit and available records allow.
• A look at the cap, the casing, and isolation distances, which is the inspection MDH recommends for buyers.
• Water testing for bacteria, nitrate, and arsenic, which MDH also recommends for buyers, even though Minnesota does not require a test at transfer.

This site does not publish prices. Any price comes from the provider, on their own terms. Official well records can be checked in the Minnesota Well Index.

Minnesota does not require a well inspection or a water test at property transfer. That surprise is worth sitting with for a moment, because many buyers assume a test is automatic.

Sellers still have a disclosure duty. Minnesota Statutes, section 103I.235, requires the seller to disclose the number, location, and status of all wells before a purchase agreement is signed, and again on a well disclosure certificate when a deed is recorded. Unused wells must be put back in use, permanently sealed by a licensed contractor, or held under a maintenance permit. MDH's pages on wells at property transfer and sealing unused wells are the official explanations.

MDH still recommends that buyers test for bacteria, nitrate, and arsenic, and have a contractor inspect the cap, the casing, and isolation distances. Those steps are recommendations from MDH. The transfer statute does not impose them. This is a general explanation, not legal advice. Whether a given sale needs a particular document is something to check with MDH or your title company.

Most homes inside Duluth are on municipal water from Lake Superior. A well-disclosure issue is more likely on a property that still has a private well, including some lots at the edge of the city system, and in outlying areas such as Hermantown, Rice Lake, and the edges of Proctor. A house can also have an unused well on a lot that later connected to city water. Unused wells still have to be disclosed, and they still have to be returned to use, sealed by a licensed contractor, or held under a maintenance permit.

If you are not sure whether a well is on the property, say that when you request help. A professional, plus the Minnesota Well Index, can often close that gap. "I cannot find it" is a reason to call, not a reason to skip the question.

The property address, the closing timeline if you have one, and whether you are the buyer or the seller. If a well disclosure form or an old lab report already exists, include it. If there may be an unused well, mention that too.