I’m sure you’re thinking, “Sewer Line Insurance?! What next? Insurance for my pet halibut called Eric?”

Well, this is actually serious business, especially if you live in an older home. Before PVC sewer pipes, sewer lines from people’s houses were made of iron or clay. Trees, especially those nasty oleanders, love to dig right in to a pipe where there is a little leak and break them open.

There was even a study I heard of on one of my favorite podcasts, Radio Lab, in which tree roots were able to detect and grow toward pipes that were not even leaking. Such as to say, they could detect the presence of water from behind the wall of the pipe.

Crazy, huh? But I digress.

Older sewer lines will eventually need to be replaced. It’s better to replace them if you have insurance. Well, technically, it’s a warranty. But you get it.

So, a few years ago, the City of Phoenix got together with a company called Sewer Line Warranties of America to provide warranties for Phoenix residents. Have a look at the Q&A website at the city.

Basically, you will be covered from the plane of your home (not under the home) to where the sewer line connects to the city’s line. On an average house, replacing that line could cost you $3,000. If you have a larger yard, just keep adding dollars!

So, the annual warranty, will cost you about $75. I have it on my house. I had it on my old house. We encourage our clients to get it, even if their house is not that old.

And, just as importantly, we strongly encourage clients to scope the pipe of any home that is older, has a lot of trees in the yard or where the drains are a little slow during inspection.

It’s definitely worth it.