Buying my first property (roots in sewer ) should I buy it

[Adan Saavedra]

Hi everyone I'm new here I'm about to buy my first property but we are having some issues ,I'm puying a small bungalo 1943 its been remodel in and out last owner really cared about his  home but wearehaving issues on the sewer line roots in it and we asked him to replace it he just got back to me saying they can be cleaned and he will pay extra 2500 $ toward the closing cost my plummers said these could cost me 4to 5 grand what should I do?what would you guys do?

[JD Martin]

I would call your local sewer utility and ask if they have a jet truck with a root cutting head, and would they be willing to do the work for free or for fee? The problem with roots in the sewer line is that the line is compromised, and anything you do will just be a stop gap solution. Once roots or anything else have broken into the joints of the pipe, it is a matter of time before the pipe fails completely. Worst case scenario is a cave-in, where the pipe is unable to support the soil above it any more. That gets you a crew and a backhoe and a new sewer line. If the line is only compromised in a few places, it can sometimes be slip-lined in place if it's big enough and it can be made whole again (i.e. get all the roots and debris out of the way). 

Someone should have CCTV'd the sewer line and you should be able to see what you are getting into. There's no way the plumbers know for sure one way or the other if they haven't sent a camera in.