FHA Water Test Requirements, and VA and USDA Well Rules: a Quick Reference
Last updated Reviewed by Sean Mihelich, founder of Save My Well
FHA tests well water in set cases, allows a 180-day-old result, and requires 3 gallons per minute and set septic distances. VA defers to the local health authority and allows 90 days. USDA requires a water test for a private well. FHA and VA both require a disinterested third party to take the sample.
FHA, VA, USDA and conventional well rules at a glance
| Rule | FHA | VA | USDA | Conventional (Fannie Mae) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water test | New construction, an appraiser-flagged problem, known unsafe water, or a nearby hazard | Must meet the local health authority's rule, else EPA | Required for a home on its own well | No automatic test; the lender can ask for one |
| Who takes the sample | Disinterested third party, never the buyer or owner | Disinterested third party; the veteran never handles it | Ask the lender | Ask the lender |
| How old the test can be | 180 days at closing | 90 days from certification, unless the local authority says otherwise | Ask the lender | Ask the lender |
| Flow | 3 gallons per minute, continuous; 5 over 4 hours for new construction | A continuous supply of safe water; no number set | Adequate and safe system; no number in the rule | Meets community standards |
| Septic distance | 50 feet to tank, 100 to drain field (75 if local rules allow), 10 to property line; local rules after the July 2026 waiver | Local minimums; the appraiser need not measure | HUD distances or the local health authority | Not stated |
| Shared well | Up to 4 homes, a shut-off valve on each, binding agreement, 3 gallons per minute each over 4 hours | Permanent easement and a recorded agreement that covers repair costs | Ask the lender | A legally binding access and maintenance agreement for a well off the property |
| Not eligible, or needs a signed note | Not eligible with a mechanical chlorinator, spring, lake, sand-point, or artesian well | Veteran signs a statement for a chlorinator, spring, dug, sand-point, or artesian well, or a filter system | Treatment systems accepted | Not stated |
Sources, current as of October 29, 2026: HUD Handbook 4000.1, Update 18 (August 12, 2026), section II.A.3.a.ii(N), and the HUD well distance waiver (July 24, 2026); VA Pamphlet 26-7, chapter 12 (updated August 12, 2026), topics 15, 16 and 18; USDA HB-1-3555, chapter 12 (revised May 5, 2025) and 7 CFR 3555.201(b)(4); Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.3-04 (June 2025). “Ask the lender” means the rule sets no number we could confirm in these sources.
What are the FHA water test requirements?
FHA does not test every well. The handbook requires a test for new construction, when the appraiser reports a problem with the well or the water, when the water is known or reported to be unsafe, and near dumps, landfills, industrial sites, or farms. The water must meet the local or state health authority's standard, or the EPA's where there is none. The sample is taken by the health department, a commercial lab, a licensed sanitary engineer, or another party the health department accepts, and the report may be no more than 180 days old at closing.
Many guides online still quote the old distance table as a hard rule. Since the waiver of July 24, 2026, an existing home can meet local distance rules instead, when the lender has acceptable water test results.
What are the VA water test requirements by state?
VA does not publish one panel per state. Its minimum property requirements say the water must meet the requirements of the health authority with jurisdiction, and the EPA's guidelines where the local authority has none. VA's own local requirements page (July 11, 2025) lists state rules for termite inspections only. To find a state's rule, start with the EPA list of state private well programs, which VA's pamphlet itself points to, then call the county health department.
Two VA rules apply in every state. A disinterested third party must collect, carry, and test the sample, and the veteran or any other interested party may never handle it. And the result is valid for 90 days from the date the local health authority certifies it, a rule VA set in its 2017 circular on water testing.
What does USDA require for a well?
USDA's guaranteed loan handbook, HB-1-3555, chapter 12, requires a water quality test for a home on its own well and accepts treatment systems. The federal rule at 7 CFR 3555.201(b)(4) says a privately owned water system is acceptable when the lender finds it adequate, safe, and compliant with applicable codes, and that USDA may require an inspection of it.
What if the well fails the bacteria test?
A total coliform positive is the common failure, and the fixable one: seal the cap and the casing, treat the well, flush, and retest with the third party the loan requires. Our coliform guide and our seller's guide walk through the timing before closing. A nitrate or arsenic failure needs a treatment system, not a well treatment.
Failed the bacteria test? Treat the well this week and retest before closing.
Answer a few questions about your well. The kit is from $329, with a lidded mixing pail and a bacteria test before and after. For context, a professional treatment visit can cost up to $500, and it may not include a bacteria test.
Lenders and agents: keep a closing on track
Inspectors, realtors and lenders: send your client the free well record and the free homebuyer report.
More for the transaction
The well flow test guide has a worksheet for the four-hour test, and the well inspection checklist covers the wellhead, the distances, and the lab panel.
Straight answers
What are the FHA water test requirements?
HUD Handbook 4000.1 (Update 18, August 2026) requires a well water test for new construction, when the appraiser reports a problem with the well or the water, when the water is known or reported to be unsafe, and near dumps, landfills, industrial sites, or farms. A disinterested third party takes the sample, and the result may be no more than 180 days old at closing.
What are the VA water test requirements by state?
VA has no national list by state. VA Pamphlet 26-7, chapter 12, says the water must meet the requirements of the health authority with jurisdiction, and the EPA's guidelines where the local authority has none. So the state or county health department sets the panel. EPA keeps a list of each state's private well program.
What is the FHA well and septic distance requirement?
HUD Handbook 4000.1 sets 10 feet from the property line, 50 feet from the septic tank, and 100 feet from the drain field, or 75 feet if local rules allow, unless local distances are greater. A HUD waiver of July 24, 2026 lets an existing home meet local distance rules instead, when the lender has acceptable water test results.
What are the FHA shared well requirements?
FHA allows a shared well that serves no more than four homes, has a shut-off valve on each home's line, has a binding shared well agreement, and gives each existing home 3 gallons per minute over a continuous four-hour period, per HUD Handbook 4000.1 (Update 18).
How long is a VA well water test good for?
VA Pamphlet 26-7 says water quality test results are valid for 90 days from the date the local health authority certifies them, unless the local authority says otherwise. FHA allows 180 days. Time the sample with the closing date in mind.
Does a USDA loan require a well water test?
Yes, for a home on its own well. USDA's handbook HB-1-3555, chapter 12, requires a water quality test for an individual well, and the federal rule at 7 CFR 3555.201 says privately owned water systems must be adequate, safe, and compliant with applicable codes.
Keep reading
Not sure which fix you need? See every well water treatment, matched to its problem.
- How to treat a well
- Iron bacteria in well water
- Iron bacteria in toilet tank
- Rotten egg smell in water
- Coliform in well water
- Low water pressure from well
- Cloudy well water
- Rust stains from well water
- Black slime on faucets
- Metallic taste in well water
- Morning sulfur smell
- Hot water smells like rotten eggs
- Well water test kits
- Well service near me
- Well maintenance checklist
- Well inspection for home buyers
- Iron filters for well water
- Well treatment kits compared
- Chlorine dioxide vs bleach
- Sulfur water filters
- Well pump short cycling
- Well running dry
- How deep is my well
- Selling a house with a well
- E. coli in well water
- Well water treatment
- Well inspection and checklist
- Well flow test
- Well pump repair
- Well pump pressure switch
- Water well drilling cost
Well test reminders, by email
What is in well water this season, and when to test. One topic, one thing to do, with the sources linked.
More guides
See the libraryFor inspectors, agents and lenders
Well Inspection: What It Checks, What It Costs, and a Printable Checklist
What a well inspection checks and costs, with a printable checklist.
7 min read
For inspectors, agents and lenders
Well Flow Test: How to Do a Yield Test and What Numbers Pass
How a yield test runs, and the gallons per minute that pass.
7 min read
Smells and taste
Rotten Egg Smell in Well Water: Causes and the Fix
One quick test tells you if it is the well or the heater.
4 min read