Download January 2015 Newsletter "Sewer, Septic Systems and Bedrooms"

 January 2015 Newsletter
"Sewer, Septic Systems and Bedrooms"
By Marcia L. Barney, Broker-in-Charge/REALTOR®, MarKam Unlimited, Inc.
Release Date: 12/30/14
Brokers frequently have questions regarding sewer and septic issues and the appropriate number of
bedrooms for a listing.
Listing brokers should determine if the property they are listing is on municipal water and sewer,
or if the property is serviced by a well and septic tank. If the property is serviced by public sewer
and water the listing broker is advised to check with the local municipality to see when bills are
due and get an average cost of services for the property. If the property is serviced by a septic
system, the broker should obtain the existing septic "improvement permit" from the local
Department of Environmental Health.
The local Health Department's Environmental Health Specialist determines whether the land/lot
will support the requested septic use in an "improvement permit" application. If so, the
Environmental Health Specialist approves a design for a system of suitable capacity, generally
assuming an occupancy level of two persons per bedroom.
North Carolina Administrative Code, Title 15A, 18A.1949, Sewage Flow Rates for Design Units,
states "In determining the volume of sewage from dwelling units, the flow rate shall be 120 gallons
per day per bedroom. The minimum volume of sewage from each dwelling unit shall be 240
gallons per day and each additional bedroom above two bedrooms shall increase the volume of
sewage by 120 gallons per day. In determining the number of bedrooms in a dwelling unit, each
bedroom and any other room or addition that can reasonably be expected to function as a
bedroom shall be considered a bedroom for design purposes. When the occupancy of a dwelling
unit exceeds two persons per bedroom, the volume of sewage shall be determined by the maximum
occupancy at a rate of 60 gallons per person per day."
Therefore, each additional bedroom increases the capacity by 120 gallons per day. In determining
the number of bedrooms a dwelling has, rooms designated as bedrooms are considered, along with
any other room or addition to the structure that can reasonably be expected to function as a
bedroom.
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Page 2-REALTOR® / Appraiser Valuation Forum
If a septic permit is available, the number of bedrooms permitted to be advertised for a listing will
be the number of bedrooms as allowed on the septic permit issued by local authorities.
As stated in an article "Advertising Permitted Number of Bedrooms" released on 9/23/10 by the
NC Association of Realtors, "While it may be factually correct that the house has four bedrooms
and a three-bedroom improvement permit, it is undeniable that the purpose of listing the property
in MLS as a four-bedroom house is to market it to buyers who are looking for a house with four
bedrooms. Marketing the property as a four-bedroom house may be seen as encouraging overuse
of the property's sewage system and could subject you to discipline by the NC Real Estate
Commission for misrepresentation of a material fact. The Commission has long taken the
position that a licensee who advertises a property for sale as having a certain number of bedrooms
should be sure that any on-site sewage system is permitted to handle that number of bedrooms."
An article in the NC Real Estate Commission Bulletin, Fall 1993, "Advertising occupancy of
properties served by onsite sewage systems" by Blackwell M. Brogden, Jr., Chief Deputy Legal
Counsel, stated, "If a licensee encourages overuse of a property through his advertising or by other
means, the occupants of the property may overload the system, thereby contributing to its eventual
failure. When the sewage system fails, the local health department can prohibit further use of the
system (and in turn occupancy of the property), in order to prevent contamination of the
surrounding groundwater and to protect the public health. Even if the system is repairable, lower
occupancy limits may be imposed. At that point, the occupants and owners of the property may
blame the licensee for their losses. They may also complain to the Real Estate Commission."
If a septic permit cannot be located, you may advertise the number of bedrooms in the home but
you should state in your MLS listing remarks that your investigation did not disclose the existence
of a septic permit.
Which leads us to the question, what qualifies as a bedroom?
According to Pete Myers with the NC Real Estate Commission's Regulatory Affairs, closets or
windows are not required for a room to be designated as a bedroom. An article released on
4/27/11 by the NC Association of Realtors, "What is a Bedroom," states that "Under the North
Carolina Residential Building Code, if a room has at least 100 square feet, and at least 50% of the
room has a ceiling height of greater than 7', it can be called a bedroom. The NCRBC also requires
a bedroom to have a window or door leading directly to the outside for access in case of an
emergency. If the room in question meets these guidelines, advertising it as a bedroom would be
reasonable."
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Page 3-REALTOR® / Appraiser Valuation Forum
Potential buyers will most likely expect a bedroom to have a closet, but older homes were designed
to use an armoire so a closet is not required.
As you well know, disclosure of bedrooms is a very complicated issue, as evidenced by the
information I have covered in this article. As a REALTOR® you have a duty of diligence and
accuracy to your client and others that may rely on the information you provide. While I have
provided my thoughts on how I like to pursue these issues, you would be wise to be sure you have
thoroughly discussed with your company and your Broker-in-Charge how you will handle these
issues in a correct and consistent manner. If you have questions regarding sewer/septic issues or
the number of bedrooms for your listing, always check with your Broker-in-Charge, local
Environmental Health Department and/or a real estate attorney. It pays to be overly cautious
when handling such sensitive issues.