Upper Darby, faced with failing sewers, adds pipe inspections before home sales

Upper Darby Township will require homeowners in the most populous municipality in the region outside of Philadelphia to have their sewer lines inspected before selling their property, a move Realtors called ineffective at solving the township’s problems with an aging sewer system and untimely given real estate challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Sewer pipe inspections cost a few hundred dollars and repairs can cost thousands, which would put a strain on sellers and could make selling homes more expensive and difficult, especially as the pandemic disrupts the housing market, local Realtors said.

Township officials said they were looking out for the interest of buyers, making sure that what is likely one of the biggest purchases of their lives does not include surprise sewer problems. A growing number of municipalities are passing or considering similar laws.

By a 7-4 vote Wednesday, the Delaware County township’s council passed its ordinance in an attempt to prevent fresh water from entering and overwhelming the municipal sewer system through dilapidated pipes. The law requires inspections of sewer laterals, the pipes that connect homes to the main sewer system, when owners transfer property or change its use. Many homeowners don’t know that they own their sewer laterals.

Township officials believe the ordinance, which takes effect immediately and gives homeowners 12 months to fix defects, will make Upper Darby more attractive to home buyers.

“We want to give people confidence to invest in Upper Darby Township,” said Vincent Rongione, the township’s chief administrative officer.

So far this year, the township has spent about $75,000 on overtime pay for sewer maintenance workers, he said. The township’s director of licenses and inspections said several sewer backups occur each week due to the old and overwhelmed system, sometimes spewing wastewater onto streets and sidewalks. Sometimes the sewer main is the problem, and sometimes it’s the laterals.

“We think [the ordinance] will save the taxpayers money over time,” Rongione said.

At least a few other municipalities in the region, including Montgomery County’s Jenkintown Borough, have similar ordinances, and “more places are considering it,” he said.

The Suburban Realtors Alliance, based in Chester County, calls Upper Darby’s ordinance a Band-Aid, estimating that the approach means the township will inspect 1% to 2% of sewer laterals each year.

The group worked with Cheltenham Township, Montgomery County, a few years ago to develop its sewer lateral ordinance. It requires the township to repair the main sewer system and inspect all private laterals over the following years. Residents have 60 days to complete repairs when problems are found.

Jamie Ridge, the alliance’s president, accused the Upper Darby council of rushing through the ordinance during a public health crisis as buyers and sellers are struggling to complete sales. The meeting was livestreamed and the public could leave comments by phone or email.

Rongione called the lateral issue "an ongoing problem that gets worse every day as the infrastructure continues to deteriorate,” and said the township is allowed to continue regular business during the virus outbreak.

The Realtors had asked council members to delay action on the ordinance until the pandemic is over and develop a more comprehensive sewer maintenance solution, including studying where the bulk of infiltration into the sewer system originates.

“The timing of this proposed ordinance — during a national health and economic emergency of unprecedented consequences — could not be worse for Upper Darby homeowners,” Ridge wrote in a letter to the council last week. Financially strapped owners would have an even harder time selling, he said.

Kay Pugh, a Realtor and Upper Darby resident and a board member of the Suburban Realtors Alliance, said that during her 10 years of doing business in Delaware County, she’s seen home sales fall apart because of expensive repairs needed on sewer laterals right before closing.

"We will close less deals in Upper Darby Township because of this ordinance,” said Pugh, an agent with Keller Williams Real Estate.

Councilmember Hafiz Tunis Jr. said the ordinance gives an added layer of transparency to home sales and keeps home buyers from being left with the burden of repairing pipes once something goes wrong.

"I see in the future this becomes a strong selling point for Realtors,” he said.