Do You Need a Sewer Scope Inspection? (and Who Owns the Sewer Line From the House to the Street)

by Brian Wittman

An older house in an established neighborhood gets you a lot. Mature trees, a real yard, a street that's already settled in. The inspection came back clean, and the basement was dry.

Here's what you may not realize. A standard home inspection doesn't have to look at the pipe that carries everything out of the house to the street. In most of the towns we checked, that pipe is yours, all the way to the main.

One south suburban family found that out with a $29,000 bill after their sewer line collapsed. The village later agreed to pay part of it, after it found damage to the main itself where their line connected. Most owners don't get that call.

Do you need a sewer scope inspection?

If the house was built before about 1980, has big trees near the yard or parkway, has a history of slow drains or backups, or sat empty for a while, a sewer scope is worth asking for. It's a camera inspection of the sewer line from your house to the street. Illinois' minimum standard for home inspections covers the drains you can see inside the house, not the buried line, so it's only included if you ask. Many inspectors offer it as an add-on in the same visit. Cost guides put it at a few hundred dollars, which is small next to a line repair.

On a newer house with PVC pipe and no trees, the odds drop. They don't go to zero. Lines still sag or get damaged during construction, and that's part of why weighing new construction versus resale comes down to more than the age of the house.

Does a home inspection include the sewer line?

Not unless you ask for it, and most buyers don't know they should. Illinois sets the minimum that every licensed home inspector in the state has to cover. When plumbing is part of the inspection, that means the water supply, the water heater, and the drain, waste and vent pipes inside the house, looked at visually.

The rules also say an inspector doesn't have to evaluate anything that isn't readily accessible. A pipe buried under your yard isn't.

That doesn't mean inspectors won't do it. Plenty offer a sewer scope as an add-on, done the same day as the home inspection. You just have to ask, because the state minimum doesn't require it. The sewer scope is just one piece of how home inspections work, and the rest of the visit has limits of its own.

If the house is on a private septic system instead of village sewer, that's a different inspection, because buying a house with a well and septic in Illinois comes with its own checks.

What does a sewer scope find?

The inspector feeds a camera into the line, usually through a cleanout near the foundation, and records the trip from the house toward the main. The report flags things like:

Tree roots growing in through the joints
Cracks, breaks and separated sections
Offsets, where two pieces of pipe no longer line up
Sags, or "bellies," where water sits instead of draining
Blockages and buildup
Crushed or collapsed pipe

Ask for the video, not just the report. If you need to negotiate or get a repair quote, it's the first thing a plumber will want to see.

It'll usually take 30 minutes to an hour on site, and it's easier when there's a cleanout near the foundation. Without one, the inspector may have to go through a roof vent or pull a toilet, and some won't, so ask ahead.

One more thing to ask. Not every inspector is required to identify the pipe material, and some materials matter a lot. If you're looking at a house from the 1950s or 1960s, ask whether they'll tell you if it's Orangeburg pipe.

How much does a sewer scope cost?

Cost guides put a sewer scope at roughly $100 to $250 as an add-on to a home inspection, and a bit more when it's booked on its own. Those are national estimates, not local quotes, so ask your inspector for the real number when you book.

Either way, it's a few hundred dollars against a repair that can run into the thousands.

Which homes is a sewer scope most worth it for?

The age of the house tells you a lot about what's in the ground.

Orangeburg pipe, a tar-paper fiber pipe, was common from roughly the late 1940s into the early 1970s. It was cheap after World War II, but it doesn't age well, and it tends to flatten and deform over time.
Clay tile was widely used before the mid-1970s. It'll hold up for decades, but roots find their way in at the joints. Minooka's own 1974 code specified vitrified tile for house connections, so clay is realistic in towns built out before then.
Cast iron shows up in older homes, and it'll rust and scale over time.
PVC or ABS plastic is what towns like Manhattan and Tinley Park require for new sewer lines today.

Trees matter just as much. Sewer backups usually start with tree roots or misaligned pipes, and the first sign is often a drain that's slower than normal.

A house that sat vacant for months deserves a scope, too, even if everything else checks out. Nobody was running water through it, so nobody would've noticed a slow drain.

Who owns the sewer line from the house to the street?

This is the part most buyers don't think to ask about. In 18 of the 20 towns we checked, you own the line from your house all the way to the main, and you're the one who maintains it.

Town	Who owns the sewer line
Frankfort	Owner, house to the main
Homer Glen	Owner, house to the property line (Illinois American Water maintains the rest)
Lemont	Owner, house to the main (the village maintains only the main)
Manhattan	Owner, house to the main
Mokena	Owner, house to the main
Monee	Owner, house to the main, including street repairs
Palos Heights	Owner, house to the main
Tinley Park	Owner, house to the main, including under the street
Orland Park	Owner's line, but Public Works repairs breaks past the property line once they're exposed (permit required)
New Lenox	Owner, house to the main
Joliet	Owner, house to the main
Lockport	Owner, house to the main
Shorewood	Owner, house to the main
Minooka	Owner, house to the main
Channahon	Owner, house to the main
Manteno	Owner, house to the main (Aqua Illinois owns the main)
Peotone	Owner, house to the main (Aqua Illinois owns the main)
Beecher	Owner, house to the main
Palos Park	Owner, house to the main
Palos Hills	Owner, house to the main

Permit rules for cutting the street or parkway vary from village to village, so call yours before any digging starts.

One more Joliet detail worth knowing. The city runs a cost-sharing program for overhead sewers and backflow prevention, but it won't pay for backups caused by root intrusion or defects in the sewer line itself.

Who pays when the break is under the street?

In the towns that put the owner on the hook to the main, you do. Tinley Park's code says it outright, including any part of the line in the public right-of-way. Monee's code includes the street repairs. Manhattan requires the owner to restore the street, sidewalk and parkway after the work. Orland Park is the exception: Public Works makes the repair past the property line once the break is exposed, and it generally doesn't let private plumbers do that part. You still file a permit.

Here's what repairs run, from national and Chicago-area cost guides. They're estimates, not quotes:

Clearing roots: about $100 to $600
Spot repair of a cracked section: about $600 to $1,050
Full line replacement: about $3,300 on average nationally, with a wide range
Trenchless replacement in the Chicago area: about $3,000 on average

Those guides don't appear to include cutting the street, the village permit, traffic control or patching the road. A break under a village street can run well past those averages. That $29,000 bill in the opening shows how far a collapse can run, but it's one example, not a typical one.

Don't count on homeowners insurance. Standard policies generally exclude wear and tear, and sewer backup coverage is usually an add-on you pay extra for. Ask your insurance agent what yours covers. Some water and sewer utilities also market line warranties for exactly this kind of repair. If you're an Aqua Illinois customer in Manteno or Peotone, you may get one of those offers in the mail, and they're legitimate. Either way, read the exclusions before you buy one.

When should you schedule a sewer scope?

During your inspection period, and ideally in the same visit as the home inspection. Inspection periods aren't long, and inspectors' calendars fill up. Book it the day your offer is accepted, so you're not waiting on someone else's schedule.

How much time you have, and what you can ask the seller for if the scope finds a problem, depends on your contract. Check it, and talk to your attorney if you have one.

Should a seller get a sewer scope before listing?

It's worth thinking through before you list, because it cuts both ways for you.

Illinois' seller disclosure form asks whether you're aware of material defects in the sanitary sewer. "Aware" means actual knowledge, and you're not required to go looking. So a seller who's never scoped the line can honestly answer no. That's exactly why buyers scope.

Why a seller might scope first:

No surprise in the middle of the deal.
Time to get two repair quotes instead of one rushed number.
You decide whether to fix it, credit it or price it in.
A clean video is a selling point on an older house.

Why a seller might not:

Once you're aware of a material defect, it's generally something you'd have to disclose, even if this deal falls through. Ask your attorney how that applies to you.
It costs a few hundred dollars.
The buyer may scope it again anyway.

I've been on the selling side of this. On a house I sold, the buyer's sewer scope turned up a problem, and three different professionals gave three different opinions and three different repair quotes. That first deal fell apart. The second buyer closed, because the condition was disclosed up front and nobody was surprised. If you're selling, that's the difference you can control.

So there's a middle path. Scope early, and if it finds something, get a repair quote before deciding what to do with it. Have your attorney weigh in on the disclosure wording.

The Bottom Line

The sewer line is one of the most expensive things in a house that nobody's looking at. A standard inspection doesn't have to cover it, and in most of the towns we checked, it's yours all the way to the main.

So ask for the scope, especially on an older house with big trees. Get the video. And find out who owns the line on that street before you own it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a sewer scope part of a home inspection?

It can be, but only if you ask. Illinois' minimum inspection standard covers the drains inside the house, not the buried line. Many inspectors offer a sewer scope as an add-on in the same visit.

How long does a sewer scope take?

Usually 30 minutes to an hour on site. It goes faster when there's an accessible cleanout near the foundation.

What is Orangeburg pipe?

It's a fiber pipe made with tar that was common from roughly the late 1940s into the early 1970s. It tends to flatten and break down with age, so it's worth identifying in a house from that era.

Do I own the sewer line under the street?

In 18 of the 20 towns we checked, yes, your part runs all the way to the main. Tinley Park and Monee say outright that it includes the street. The two exceptions are Homer Glen, where Illinois American Water maintains it past the property line, and Orland Park, where Public Works repairs breaks past the property line once they're exposed. Check with your own village before you buy.

Does homeowners insurance cover a broken sewer line?

Usually not for age or wear. Sewer backup coverage is typically an add-on. Ask your insurance agent exactly what your policy covers.

Does a newer house need a sewer scope?

The odds are lower with newer PVC pipe, but lines still sag or get damaged during construction. If the price of the scope is small next to your peace of mind, it's still worth it.

If your village handles the sewer line differently than what's here, tell me and I'll fix it.

If you're getting ready to sell an older home, set up a time and we'll weigh whether a pre-listing sewer scope makes sense for your house, and who owns the line on your street, before a buyer's sewer scope does.

Brian Wittman is a licensed real estate broker (Real Broker LLC), mortgage loan originator (NMLS #2646598, NEXA Mortgage, LLC, Equal Housing Lender), and life insurance producer (Levinson & Associates). This article is for educational purposes only and is not financial, lending, tax, or legal advice, an offer, or a commitment to lend; all loans are subject to credit approval. Information is accurate as of the publication date; for current details and full disclosures, visit https://bluejeanbroker.com/disclosures.