Would You Be a House That Has a Sewer Lift Behind It?

I had to look up "lift station" to find out what it was....

I would have to talk to the sanitation department and the city to find out if there have ever been problems with that particular lift station.

I would talk with neighbors and ask them what they have experienced while living there - and yes - I'd ask how long they've lived there - heck - I'd even talk with the owners and ask them about it!! DISCLOSURE!!! Required.

These are not the same as a private septic systems and most housing developments in Florida have them.

I would talk to the current owners/neighbors and HOA (if there is one) to be sure there haven't been any problems with it. I know the last development we lived in here in FL they would fix any problems ASAP and there was never any overflow or odors from the system.

The housing market varies so much from state to state, so don't go by housing markets in other states. I would look into if there have been other offers and get a inspection done. You can also ask your realtor what the average time houses are on the market for in your area.

Added**
Since it is not on the owners property and they are not responsible for it, it would not be a part of any sellers disclosure.

No I would not purchase.

The housing market is booming here. Most homes are sold within 2 weeks if not sooner... Many never hit the official market.

So red flag for me is the house sitting since Feb.

If you choose to buy it and get a good price, just know you may take a loss when you try to sell. No one wants an eyesore .. Even if they have a band aid (bushes) on them

What is a sewer lift? Is that a pumping station? We have a major pumping station in the middle of a cul de sac in our subdivision. When our subdivision was first built we had MSD trucks down there all the time. Twenty years later you see them every now and then. The issues in the beginning were that the pump was not powerful enough to handle flow. They replaced the pump, the subdivision put up a fence and landscaped, all is right in the world.

Even my house has a utility pole in the front yard. There were only 9 lots left when we considered building here. Ours is the largest lot int he subdivision. No one wanted to build here because of the pole and we were on the corner. We have lived here for 24 years, raised 4 kids, have had no issues.

My point is I wouldn't shy away from a property because others have. Some people are stupid, their loss, our gain.

By the way, I walk and run by that pumping station, never smelled a thing. No noise, no smell, nothing.

I would call to see what's involved with a sewer lift. I'd have to - to make an informed decision. This is a huge investment - better to do the homework. Even talk to the neighbors too. Google online, etc.

If it's purely a visual eyesore - a fence would do the trick.

I Found information about sewer lift stations. I saw pictures of several different looking ones. What does this one look like? One of the pictures was of a grey colored metal box. Inside are controls. Sewage is never above ground. I think there is one a few blocks from my house. I frequently walk that way. Never heard any noise or noticed any smell.

I suggest you talk with someone in the city who manages the sewer system. They will be able to tell you how it works and if there could be a problem with odor. Have you talked with neighbor's to ask for their experience with it? You could also look at other lifts in town and ask residents for their experience.

If the lift is similar to what I see in my neighbor hood and.what the picture shows I would not be concerned if the price reflects a reduced value.

Sounds like the lift is not on your property. Is it on someone else's property or on a right of way? Is the house in a neighborhood with a homeowners association. I'd gather local information before I decided. I would want to know why it hasn't sold. There could be other reasons. Has their been a home inspection? Is the neighborhood well maintained? Are the neighbors respectful? Check with the police to learn how many calls they've responded to and their nature.

Maybe it's a regional thing but I can't picture what you mean. Where I live, septic systems are common but of course they're underground and the only thing that is seen above ground is if there is a pump to pull waste from a lower level to a higher level...is a sewer lift part of a private septic system for the house or is it sort of a pump for the municipal supply? If it's part of your own system, I wouldn't think twice about it. If it's part of the municipal system, maybe see what maintenance and repair work volume looks like (meaning are breakdowns few and far between or are they common). Honestly give my history of having all kinds of wacky, half-assed waste systems on my property it wouldn't bother me if I liked the house enough.

probably. we have septic so my personal sewer is burried in my backyard. can i smell someone elses yes. can i deal with it yes. it only lasts a day till they get their pump basin chlorinated again (or something like that not sure but i know the stink only lasts a day then is gone for months)

our house was on market for 2 years before we bought it. purchase price was 1/3 of its current value. and we put about half its current value into it to remodel it and make it nice and more modern.

Your realtor should be able to look up comparable houses in the neighborhood to see how quickly they sold and for how much. If the other houses are selling quickly and this one isn't then you can assume that is the reason. This would also be a consideration if you decide to sell it someday...it may not sell for you for the same reason.

That being said, my moms first house she bought when she was 24 backed up to a railroad track (right behind the back fence) AND a major freeway right behind that! The house literally shook when the train went by! People who came over would be like, WTH is that??!! And we didn't even notice it.

So I guess if you get a GREAT deal on it and you checked with the neighbors and city and you plan on staying on not reselling it, I would consider it. Good luck.

Did you check the Megan's law website to make sure there is not a sex offender on your block or living next door? I would think that would effect the resale of the home more than the sewer lift. I admit though I never heard of a sewer lift but I did Google 'home values sewer lift'. I couldn't find any evidence that this negatively impacts the property value but do your own research.

When house hunting years ago we found a house we really liked. It came down to that one or the one we ended up buying. The big reason we passed on the other house was because it was downwind from a sewage treatment plant. We were familiar with the area because it's near a large shopping center that we went to often as it had thing like Target and Home Depot and other usual shopping spots. We knew what it could smell like on a hot summer's day if the wind was blowing the right way. It was a little bit of a hard choice as that house had no HOA like this one does and a few other things we preferred but ultimately the idea of living down wind from the sewage treatment plant made our choice for us. A sewer lift would be a big red flag for me.

a lift station is not sewage treatment place, it's where the plumbing for the system is routed through, 99.9% of the time it will just be a building that is nothing ever but a building where city workers come and check things every month or so, that other tiny percent of a time it will "go down" which means that the pumps stop working and the houses on that line flood with sewage, but the actually lift station doesn't have any sewage in it... sorry to say I know this from first hand experience -- twice my house flooded with sewage and it was cause the lift station went down, and lucky me, they didn't know there was a problem till "a resident" (read "ME") called to tell them. I am about a 1/2 mile from the lift station and there was no issue of sewage there, only on my line from the station in our houses.

It would depend on how perfect the house is for my current and future needs and how long I plan on living there. If you plan on living there for years and years, maybe forever then you don't have to worry about the resale problem. If you are thinking more short term, you will be the person waiting months and months, maybe years to sell that house.