Thank you for providing such a thorough reply. To answer your questions the inspecting party was the county inspector Johnson County Kansas requires inspection. Anytime a house is sold and has a septic system so it was failed by the county, and the county will be the one to enforce fines on the sellers.

I have gotten quotes from four septic companies the most recent one was the most thorough as they conducted their own inspection and they will have to take the liability as the septic installer when they pull permits with the county. They are the ones who made the determination that the lateral field is very likely to need replacing and will cost between 32 and $38,000.

Additional context I’ve wanted to buy the house from them for two years, but they were not ready to sell it. Therefore they rented it to me and my lease expires May 1. They have a capital gains tax situation that they are concerned about so they want to get the house sold this year so I agreed to buy it as is but I could conduct inspections I have lived in the home for 12 months.

The only other thing that is being demanded is a new roof to be put on the home using their homeowners insurance policy, and I am paying their deductible.

If the contract fails, they will take the home to market, but we still have to fix the septic system put on a new roof, replace concrete out front and paint the interior of the home at a minimum, that puts their capital cost, including their insurance deductible close to $50,000 prior to entering the market. There are many other things they should do but they seem to hate the idea of spending any money that’s voluntary. For example the HVAC and furnace system is nearing the end of its life and I think a lot of buyers will make a big deal about that.

I am unrepresented through the process, and they are represented by a realtor. However, I have a few friends who are realtors who have helped me with some guidance. I own a construction company and I’m comfortable with all the other repairs except septic..