Out in the township, you're on a well and septic in Clare County

If you’re buying a home in one of Clare County’s townships — outside the cities and the village of Farwell — there’s a good chance it runs on a private well for water and its own septic system for waste, not municipal utilities. That’s the norm across this rural, lake-dotted county, but it’s worth understanding before you buy.

A septic system is your responsibility, and replacing a failed one is expensive — a new drain field can run into many thousands of dollars, far more than a routine tank pump-out. Michigan is the only state in the country with no statewide septic code, so the rules are set locally. In Clare County, wells and septic systems are handled by the Central Michigan District Health Department, which issues the permits and inspects new systems.

Clare County doesn’t require a countywide septic inspection when a home changes hands. (Worth knowing: the same health department does require one next door in Isabella County, but Clare hasn’t adopted that rule.) So that inspection is on you, the buyer. Before you sign, it’s smart to have both the septic system and the well water tested, and to find out where the tank and drain field are and when the tank was last pumped. The Central Michigan District Health Department has an office in Harrison (cmdhd.org).