Should You Get a Sewer Scope Before Buying a Home?

You're about to make the biggest purchase of your life, and your home inspector just handed you a clean report. Here's the catch: that report almost never includes the sewer line — the one system that can cost five figures to replace.

The Inspection Gap

A general home inspection is visual and above-ground. It does not send a camera down the sewer lateral. On a 60- or 80-year-old New Jersey home with original clay, Orangeburg, or cast-iron pipe, that's exactly where the expensive surprises hide.

What a Scope Can Catch

• Root intrusion already clogging the line
• Cracked, offset, or collapsed sections
• Bellies that will cause chronic backups
• Orangeburg pipe on the verge of failure
• A line that's months — not years — from replacement

Leverage at the Table

A sewer scope costs a fraction of a repair. If it finds a problem before you close, that's powerful negotiating leverage — you can ask the seller to repair it, credit you, or lower the price. Find it after you close, and it's entirely your bill.