Last reviewed and updated: 2026-09-28
An inspector reports symptoms, not causes: damp, a stain, a meter that moves. Until the leak is located, both sides are guessing, and buyers price uncertainty at worst case. Getting it located and documented converts an open-ended risk into a known repair with a number attached, which is almost always cheaper for the seller.
What an inspector can and cannot tell you
A home inspection is visual and non-invasive. An inspector will note elevated moisture readings, a stain on a ceiling, a water meter that turns with everything off, corrosion on visible pipe, or polybutylene supply pipe. What they will not do is open a wall, cut concrete or trace a buried line.
So the report says there is a problem. It does not say where, why, or what fixing it costs. That gap is where deals get repriced.
How Georgia's disclosure rules work
Georgia is a buyer-beware state, and sellers are not required to complete a disclosure form. That is the starting point, and it is where most people stop reading, which is a mistake.
The obligation that does exist is around known material defects. A seller who knows about a defect that materially affects the property and is not apparent to the buyer cannot conceal it. Once an inspection has put a leak in writing, the seller knows. Saying nothing to the next buyer after a deal falls through is a different situation from not knowing in the first place.
This is general information, not legal advice. Disclosure obligations, and what counts as concealment, turn on specific facts. If a sale is at stake, ask a Georgia real estate attorney rather than relying on any website, including this one.
If you are the seller
- Get it located before you negotiate. "There is damp in the hall" invites the buyer to imagine a slab repipe. "It is a failed supply fitting at the hall bathroom, here is the report" invites a specific, smaller number.
- Get a written report. Leak type, location, method used, date. It is the document that makes the finding concrete for everyone.
- Decide repair or credit deliberately. A completed repair with an invoice removes the issue. A price credit leaves the buyer imagining the worst, and they will price it that way.
- Keep every document. The report and the repair invoice are what protect you after closing if the subject comes back.
Not sure what you are hearing?
Describe the sound, the damp patch or the bill and we will tell you what it usually means in a Marietta home and what it takes to confirm it.
If you are the buyer
- Establish the pipe material. The water heater is where the supply lines are exposed. Gray plastic stamped PB2110 is polybutylene and it changes the whole picture, including what some insurers will write.
- Ask for the sewer lateral to be camera-inspected on any older Marietta property with mature trees. A camera inspection is inexpensive next to a collapsed line under a front garden.
- Separate the symptom from the cause before you accept a credit. A number agreed against an unlocated leak is a guess, and it is your guess once you own it.
- Check which utility bills the property and pull the usage history. A pattern of high bills is evidence of something ongoing.
What comes up on Marietta properties specifically
| Property type | What inspections commonly flag |
|---|---|
| 1978-1995 subdivision, East Cobb or Sandy Plains | Polybutylene supply pipe; fails at fittings without warning |
| 1960s-1980s slab home | Copper under the slab; a warm patch or a moving meter |
| Historic, near Marietta Square | Galvanized supply and cast iron drains, plus mixed-era junctions |
| Any older property with large trees | Sewer lateral root intrusion; repeated backups in the history |
| East Cobb with a pool | Ageing pool plumbing and an auto-fill masking the loss |
| A house that sat empty | Pinhole leaks in low-use copper lines |
Where these figures come from
Everything above is taken from a published source. Rates, policies and conditions change, so check the date on each before relying on it.
- Georgia residential seller disclosure practice: Georgia is a buyer-beware state; sellers are not required to complete a disclosure form but must not conceal known material defects. Summarized from Georgia real estate legal commentary, 2024-2026.
- Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority, Pinhole Leaks, for the low-water-use link.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to disclose a leak when selling a house in Georgia?
Georgia is a buyer-beware state and does not require a disclosure form. However, a seller who knows about a material defect that is not apparent to the buyer cannot conceal it, and an inspection report puts the seller on notice. Take legal advice on a specific sale.
Should I fix a leak before selling or offer a credit?
A completed repair with an invoice usually costs less than the credit a buyer will demand against an unknown problem, because buyers price uncertainty at worst case. Either way, locate it first so the number is based on something real.
Is polybutylene pipe a deal breaker in Marietta?
Not automatically, but it is routinely raised at inspection, it can affect what some insurers will write, and it gets priced into offers. It was installed across Georgia from roughly 1978 to 1995, which covers a large share of Cobb County housing.
Is a sewer camera inspection worth it when buying?
On an older Marietta property with mature trees, yes. Root intrusion at clay and cast iron joints is common here, and a camera inspection costs a fraction of excavating a collapsed lateral under an established front garden.