Why does a hydrostatic test need the seller’s signature?
Because the resale contract says so in plain words. Paragraph 7A of TREC’s One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale) gives you access to the home at reasonable times and lets you have it inspected by inspectors you choose who are licensed by TREC or otherwise permitted by law. Then it adds one sentence: any hydrostatic testing must be separately authorized by the seller in writing. That sentence is in the current 20-19 contract and in the 20-18 version before it.
TREC’s own FAQ reads that sentence the same way. It says there must be a separately signed document of authorization by the seller for a hydrostatic test. Texas REALTORS’ 2023 “Fact or Fiction” column calls it a fact that a buyer may not arrange a hydrostatic test without the seller’s written consent, and points to the Addendum for Authorizing Hydrostatic Testing, TREC No. 48-1, as the way to give it.
So plan on a signed form. The contract sentence asks for separate written authorization from the seller.
TREC’s form page and its contracts listing both show the current 48-1 with an effective date of March 1, 2020. The form page says the addendum addresses who pays for and is responsible for damages from a hydrostatic test, if the parties agree to have one performed. That’s the job of the form: written permission, and who carries the cost if the test damages something.
Ask the plumber how the test would be run on this house, how long it takes and what the results would tell you, and have that conversation before anyone signs.
What does a standard inspection leave out of the plumbing?
Quite a bit, by design. TREC’s standards of practice describe a home inspection as a limited visual survey and basic performance evaluation of a home’s systems and components, using normal controls. The same rule says it is not a comprehensive investigation or exploratory probe to determine the cause or effect of deficiencies the inspector notes.
A few lines in those rules matter for plumbing:
- An inspection does not require cameras or other tools used to inspect the interior of a drain or sewer line.
- It does not require any method of destructive testing that damages otherwise sound materials or finishes.
- The inspector is not required to inspect anything buried, hidden, latent or concealed.
- Under the plumbing systems rule, the inspector is not required to inspect for sewer clean-outs.
What the inspector does report under the plumbing rule includes visible material used for water supply lines and drain lines, the presence of active leaks, and deficiencies in water supply pipes, waste pipes and fixture drain performance. TREC’s standard inspection report form, REI 7-6, describes a real estate inspection the same way, as a visual survey of a structure and a basic performance evaluation of its systems and components.
So when your inspector writes up slow drains, a stain under a bathroom vanity or a line they couldn’t see, that’s the point where a follow-up conversation with a licensed plumber makes sense. Ask whether a hydrostatic test is the right next step for what the inspector found, or whether something else answers the question better. Our guide to common New Braunfels inspection problems covers what else tends to show up on a report.
How does 48-1 handle damage from the test?
It makes you and the seller decide, in writing, who pays if the test damages something. That’s what TREC’s form page says the addendum addresses, and it’s the choice the form asks the parties to make before the test happens.
This is where you slow down. Before you or the seller sign, get answers from a licensed plumber about the scope of the test on this house and what could go wrong. Then take the form and the plumber’s answers to your agent, and to an attorney if the stakes are high, and ask questions like these:
- If the test damages a pipe, a floor or a cabinet, who pays under the choice we’re about to make?
- If there’s a dollar limit, what happens to damage above it?
- Does my homeowner’s insurance or the plumber’s insurance come into it, and who should I ask?
- What does the seller’s agent expect, and what’s a reasonable ask given what the inspector found?
Settle those answers before the form is signed, and keep a copy of the signed page with your contract.
It also helps to write down the condition of the areas the plumber will work around before the test starts. Take dated photos of floors, cabinets and finishes near the fixtures involved, and share them with the seller’s agent. If something is damaged, both sides will be looking at the same starting point.
Who does the test, and who fixes what it finds?
A licensed plumber does the test. Both the 48-1 form and TREC’s FAQ put a licensed plumber on the job, and the FAQ says only a licensed plumber may perform a hydrostatic test on a system within a home. Ask your inspector who they’d refer you to, and ask the plumber for their license information before the appointment.
If the test finds something, the repair is plumbing work, and Texas law sets licensing rules for that work. Section 1301.351 of the Texas Occupations Code says a person, other than a responsible master plumber, may not engage in plumbing unless the person holds the proper license, registration or endorsement and the work is supervised by a person licensed under that chapter. The law’s definition of plumbing includes the installation, repair, service or maintenance of piping, including a drain or waste pipe, used to carry wastewater or sewage from or within a building to a sewer service lateral or a septic terminal. The State Board of Plumbing Examiners publishes the same text.
The resale contract lines up with that. Paragraph 7F says agreed repairs must be performed by persons licensed to provide them, or, if no license is required by law, by people commercially engaged in that trade.
In New Braunfels, it’s also worth knowing where the home’s line goes before the plumber arrives. Ask the plumber where the line connects, and ask whether the house is on a public sewer or a septic system. If it’s on a public sewer, ask which utility serves the address and where that utility’s responsibility starts. Our post on New Braunfels water and wastewater service covers how to check which provider serves an address.
How does the test fit inside your option period?
Tightly, so schedule it before you need it. Under Paragraph 5B of the resale contract, the option period is the number of days after the effective date you write in, during which you have the unrestricted right to terminate by giving notice. Notices under that paragraph must be given by 5:00 p.m. local time on the date specified. If you terminate within the time prescribed, the option fee isn’t refunded and any earnest money is refunded to you. Paragraph 5D adds a condition: if no option fee is stated or you don’t deliver it on time, you don’t have that unrestricted right.
A hydrostatic test sits on top of your inspection. It needs the seller’s signature on 48-1, a plumber’s schedule and time to read the results. If you want the option period to be your way out, all of that has to happen before 5:00 p.m. on its last day.
Here’s the order that works:
- Deliver the option fee on time, and get the inspection on the calendar the day your contract is effective.
- If the inspector flags the plumbing, call a licensed plumber the same day about scope, risk, cost and timing.
- Bring the plumber’s answers to your agent and work out the 48-1 damage terms with the seller.
- Schedule the test only after the seller signs the form.
- Leave time before the option period ends to decide what to do with the results.
If you’re still lining up your offer, our earnest money guide and the buyer resources page can help you plan the option period and the rest of the timeline.
