We have not verified a statewide law in Tennessee requiring a septic inspection at the time a property transfers. That does not mean no requirement applies where you're buying: county and municipal time-of-transfer ordinances exist in various places around the country outside the states with a statewide law. Check the county page below, and ask the local health department directly — that is the authoritative source for a local ordinance, and this page is not.
No statewide Tennessee law requiring septic inspection at time of transfer. Three states do have a real, verified one — Massachusetts, Iowa, and a waterfront-only law in New Hampshire — for comparison; Tennessee is not one of them, at least not at the state level. A county or municipality in Tennessee could still have its own ordinance we have not audited; the local health department for the specific county is the authoritative source.
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Division of Water Resources. See the full Tennessee septic regulation page for the permit sequence and licensing.
Wherever you're transacting in Tennessee, the septic permit or as-built (where one exists) is almost always held by the county or district health office, not the state. How to find septic records before closing covers how to pull it; below is the county-by-county index of what we hold for Tennessee.
| County | Records held |
|---|---|
| Lawrence | 20,898 |
| Franklin | 18,787 |
| Roane | 18,206 |
| Bedford | 13,172 |
| Fentress | 10,411 |
| Anderson | 8,894 |
| Unicoi | 8,747 |
| Crockett | 8,219 |
| Meigs | 7,764 |
| Humphreys | 7,687 |
| Chester | 7,023 |
| Union | 6,766 |
| Benton | 6,731 |
| Jackson | 6,653 |
| Johnson | 6,377 |
| Lauderdale | 5,327 |
| Grundy | 5,268 |
| Carter | 4,949 |
| Clay | 4,930 |
| Coffee | 4,756 |
| Van Buren | 4,568 |
| Trousdale | 4,547 |
| Cheatham | 4,453 |
| Cocke | 4,278 |
| Carroll | 4,252 |
| Bradley | 2,934 |
| Bledsoe | 2,835 |
| Cannon | 2,766 |
| Rhea | 2,754 |
| Cumberland | 2,299 |
| Claiborne | 1,906 |
| Campbell | 1,592 |
| Dyer | 1,089 |
| Monroe | 1,000 |
| Lake | 748 |
| Lewis | 727 |
| Madison | 416 |
| Davidson | 232 |
| Shelby | 168 |
| Knox | 100 |
| Hamilton | 25 |
| Sevier | 8 |
| Blount | 1 |
| Jefferson | 1 |
Full Tennessee county index · Tennessee regulations · Tennessee septic companies · Open the parcel map
We have not verified a statewide law requiring one in Tennessee. A county or municipal ordinance could still apply; check with the local health department where the property is located.
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Division of Water Resources
At the county or district health office that issued the permit, in almost every case. See the county-by-county index on this page for Tennessee, and our general guide to finding records before closing.
Reviewed 2026-08-31 against the official sources linked above (where a source is cited) or, where none is cited, left deliberately general. Laws, lender overlays and local ordinances change; confirm current requirements with the county or state agency, your lender, and a licensed inspector before you rely on this for a closing.