St. Louis County, Minnesota: septic system inspection at sale
Checked on November 9, 2026 against the official rule. Rule set by St. Louis County.
General information, not legal advice. This is our summary of the official rule as we read it. The ordinance or code and the health department decide: confirm with them before you list, sign or close.
The rule
| Question | What the official text says |
|---|---|
| What is required | County page: Ordinance 61 requires prior to the sale, transfer, contract for deed or other conveyance of land with a dwelling that the listed conditions (valid certificate, or inspection/escrow) are met. Source: stlouiscountymn.gov via wayback (see census notes for capture) |
| Triggered by | sale, transfer, contract for deed, conveyance Source: stlouiscountymn.gov via wayback (see census notes for capture) |
| Deadline | Prior to sale/transfer/contract for deed/conveyance of land with dwelling or structure requiring SSTS Source: stlouiscountymn.gov via wayback (see census notes for capture) |
| Who pays | negotiable Source: stlouiscountymn.gov via wayback (see census notes for capture) |
| How long a report is valid | Existing COC 3 yrs; new/replacement 10 yrs Source: stlouiscountymn.gov via wayback (see census notes for capture) |
| Exemptions |
Source: stlouiscountymn.gov via wayback (see census notes for capture) |
| Who may inspect | Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) licensing of SSTS businesses. official list (webapp.pca.state.mn.us) Source: webapp.pca.state.mn.us |
This is our summary of the official rule as we read it. The ordinance or code and the health department decide: confirm with them before you list, sign or close. Rule set by: St. Louis County.
Checked on November 9, 2026: read in a web-archive copy of the official page (the live site was blocked from our connection).
Septic systems in St. Louis County: the state’s count
MPCA counts 40,756 septic systems (SSTS) in St. Louis County in 2025, the 2nd highest number of Minnesota’s 87 counties. Licensed inspectors and the county did 733 compliance inspections of existing systems that year: 1.8% of the county’s systems, against 2.11% statewide (the 32nd highest share). The county issued 742 construction permits in 2025 and 16,698 from 2002 to 2025. MPCA’s table marks the county as requiring a compliance inspection at property transfer, which matches the rule on this page.
Source: MPCA, 2025 Subsurface Sewage Treatment Systems Annual Report (April 2026), Appendix A, as reported by each county; ranks among the 87 counties in the table (1 = highest). MPCA counts all compliance inspections of existing systems, whatever the trigger (property transfer, building permit and others).
Private wells in St. Louis County
In 2015 about 51,021 of St. Louis County’s 200,431 residents (25%) got their drinking water from a private well, by the USGS estimate. That is the 64th highest share of the 87 Minnesota counties in the USGS table, and the 2nd highest number of private-well users.
As we read it, this rule covers the septic system, not the well.
Source: USGS county water use 2015 (Dieter et al., 2018). Ranks count the Minnesota counties in the USGS table (1 = highest).
Certified labs nearest to St. Louis County for a well water test
Labs on the Minnesota certified drinking-water list that the list marks as taking samples from homeowners or outside clients, certified for coliform bacteria, nearest first. 3 of them are in St. Louis County.
| Lab | Town | Distance | Certified on the list for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pace Analytical Services, LLC - Virginia | Virginia, MN · in this county | 17 miles | coliform bacteria, nitrate (subcontracted), arsenic (subcontracted) |
| RMB Environmental Laboratories, Inc. - Virginia | Virginia, MN · in this county | 17 miles | coliform bacteria, nitrate, arsenic (subcontracted) |
| Pace Analytical Services, LLC - Duluth | Duluth, MN · in this county | 40 miles | coliform bacteria, nitrate, arsenic (subcontracted) |
Source: MDH Accredited Labs in Minnesota Accepting Drinking Water Samples from Private Well Users (October 2026; read November 15, 2026). Straight-line distance from the centre of St. Louis County (the average of its Census ZIP-area points); “approx.” = lab placed at its ZIP centre. Call the lab first: lists do not say which household tests each lab takes or what it charges.
Nearest other sale-time rules
Buying or selling near a county line? These are the closest other local rules in our census to St. Louis County.
| Rule | State | Distance | Covers | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aitkin County | Minnesota | about 64 miles | Septic system | November 9, 2026 |
| Pine County | Minnesota | about 82 miles | Septic system | November 9, 2026 |
| Cass County | Minnesota | about 94 miles | Septic system | November 9, 2026 |
| Crow Wing County | Minnesota | about 96 miles | Septic system | November 9, 2026 |
| Beltrami County | Minnesota | about 116 miles | Septic system | November 9, 2026 |
Straight-line distance between county centres (the average of each county’s Census ZIP-area points). Townships, villages and health districts are placed at the centre of their county.