One thing that surprised me when I got into real estate some years back was how many wells are in the metro area, particularly in more inner-ring suburbs like Bloomington or Crystal. Most have been sealed and haven’t been in use in decades, but if you have one on your property and you want to sell your home, it’s something you’ll want to mention to the agent listing your home. The vast majority of the time, if the well was sealed properly, and if there are records and the well is disclosed to potential buyers, they rarely cause a snag with a sale.
Problems typically arise when either the well has not been properly sealed and/or there are no records to substantiate the status of the well. The state does maintain an index of all parcels that they’re aware have wells, but this is by no means complete, as reliable records have only been kept since the 1960s. If you think or know that you have a well on your property, let your agent know right away so they can make sure that everything is in order before you list. This may include having the well sealed or just gathering all of the records.
Wells rarely cause issues with home sales in my experience when agents are made aware of them ahead of time and can address any problems before the home hits the market. If you have questions about selling your property with a well, or if you think you have a well but aren’t sure, let me know and I can point you in the right direction.
