Buying an Older Home in Hornell: A Practical Pre-Offer Checklist

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Last reviewed: October 9, 2026. General information only, not legal, engineering, or inspection advice. Every house is different. Hire qualified, licensed professionals, and confirm current rules with the offices we link to before you sign a contract.

Much of Hornell’s housing was built long before modern codes: railroad-era houses on the city’s grid, two-family homes, and farmhouses in the surrounding towns. Older homes can be good value, but the expensive surprises tend to come from the same few places: what’s in the paint and pipes, where the water comes from and where the wastewater goes, the basement, and the systems that keep a house warm through a Southern Tier winter. This checklist walks through what to check, and which rules apply, before you make an offer.

1. The paperwork you’re entitled to

New York’s Property Condition Disclosure Statement

Since March 20, 2024, sellers of most residential property in New York must give the buyer a completed, signed Property Condition Disclosure Statement before the buyer signs a binding contract. The old option of handing the buyer a $500 credit at closing instead is gone. The form covers the home’s history, structure, mechanical systems, environmental issues, and, since the 2024 changes, flood risk and flood insurance history (see our flood zone guide and the NYS Bar Association summary).

The disclosure reflects the seller’s actual knowledge. It’s not an inspection. Read it, compare it with what your inspector finds, and ask your attorney about any “unknown” answers on items that matter to you.

Federal lead-based paint disclosure (homes built before 1978)

If the house was built before 1978, and most older Hornell homes were, federal law adds its own disclosure. According to the EPA, before a buyer signs a contract the seller and agents must:

  • give the buyer the pamphlet Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home;
  • disclose any known lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards and provide available records and reports;
  • include a Lead Warning Statement in or attached to the contract; and
  • give the buyer a 10-day period to conduct a lead-based paint inspection or risk assessment. The parties can agree in writing to change the period, and the buyer can waive it.

The EPA notes that lead-based paint in good condition usually isn’t a hazard, but deteriorating paint (peeling, chipping, chalking, or cracking) is and needs prompt attention. If you have young children or plan a renovation that will disturb painted surfaces, take the 10-day inspection opportunity seriously and hire a certified inspector or risk assessor.

2. Water: city system, service line, or private well?

Inside the city

The City of Hornell’s Water Treatment Plant page says the city’s water comes from three upland reservoirs owned by the Hornell Water Department, on Seeley Creek and Trout Run, with two supplementary wells. Treatment includes aeration, sedimentation and clarification, rapid sand filtration, and chlorination. The City publishes an Annual Drinking Water Quality Report, which you should read for the year you’re buying.

The Chamberlain’s office says the Hornell Water Department serves the City of Hornell, the Village of North Hornell, and portions of the Town of Hornellsville. If a listing says “public water,” confirm which system it is.

The service line inventory

New York water systems have had to inventory the material of every service line, the pipe from the main into the house. The City of Hornell’s inventory filing with the NYS Department of Health, certified December 19, 2025, reported 3,024 service lines in the system. Of those, 2 were listed as lead, 31 as galvanized requiring replacement, 59 as non-lead, and 2,932 as unknown. The filing says the inventory is available on request from City Hall.

Put plainly, the material of most service lines in the city hasn’t been confirmed. For an older house, ask the City about the specific address, and have your inspector look at where the water line enters the basement. Lead pipe is typically dull gray, soft, and shows a shiny surface if scratched. A plumber can confirm.

Outside the city: private wells

Once you leave the city’s water service area, many homes rely on a private well or spring. The New York State Department of Health’s private wells page is the place to start. State guidance is to test private wells for coliform bacteria at least once a year, and to test for other contaminants periodically. Use a laboratory certified by the state’s Environmental Laboratory Approval Program (ELAP).

For a purchase, make a well water test a condition of your contract, and ask the seller for any past results, the well’s depth and construction details, and any treatment equipment (softeners, filters, UV units) that conveys with the house.

3. Wastewater: city sewer or septic?

Inside the city, most homes are on municipal sewer. Outside the city, a septic system is common, and the rules depend on the county.

Steuben County

Steuben County doesn’t run environmental health programs through a county health department. As the county’s Environmental Services page explains, the New York State Department of Health’s Hornell District Office carries out environmental health programs for Steuben and Schuyler Counties. It’s located at 107 Broadway in Hornell (see the state’s district office list). New and replacement septic systems in New York are designed under 10 NYCRR Appendix 75-A.

We didn’t find a Steuben County requirement for a septic inspection at sale comparable to Allegany County’s (below). That doesn’t mean you should skip one. Hire a qualified septic inspector to locate, open, and evaluate the system, ask when the tank was last pumped, and check with the Hornell District Office about any permit records for the property.

Allegany County: a sanitary survey is required at transfer

If you’re buying across the county line, in Alfred, Almond, or elsewhere in Allegany County, the rules are different. The Allegany County Department of Health runs its own environmental health program. Its sanitary survey policy (updated September 9, 2025) says that under Article III of the Allegany County Sanitary Code:

  • a sanitary survey of the septic system must be completed as part of a residential property transfer, before the transfer is completed;
  • if the property has a private water supply (well, spring, cistern), the water must be tested by an ELAP-certified lab, at minimum for total coliform and E. coli, and the sample must be collected by the Department of Health or its designated representative, not by a party to the sale;
  • surveys are good for six months from the date of inspection; and
  • parties who complete a transfer without a sanitary survey can be cited for violating Article III.

Build the survey into your timeline early, and check the department’s current fee schedule and application.

4. Radon

The New York State Department of Health says anyone buying a home should have it tested for radon. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can enter through the foundation, and the only way to know the level in a particular house is to test. The Department sells lower-cost test kits and recommends retesting every five years and after remodeling, weatherizing, or mitigation. Its radon pages explain testing and how to find a certified mitigation contractor. For a purchase, a professional test during the inspection period is the usual approach.

5. The basement, foundation, and drainage

Hornell’s flood history is as much about basements as about rivers. The area’s 2002 flood mitigation plan describes repeated damage from groundwater and surface water seeping into basements. When you tour and inspect:

  • look for efflorescence (white mineral deposits), water lines, rust on the bottoms of appliances, and fresh paint covering only the lower walls;
  • ask whether there’s a sump pump, how often it runs, and whether it has a battery or water-powered backup;
  • check gutters, downspouts, and how the ground slopes around the house; and
  • look up the address on FEMA’s flood map, even if you’re nowhere near the river.

Stone and block foundations are common in older houses. Bowing walls, horizontal cracks, and active water are worth a structural engineer’s opinion before you’re committed.

6. Heating, electrical, and the systems that matter in winter

Southern Tier winters make heating the system you least want to get wrong. Before you make an offer:

  • find out the fuel (natural gas, fuel oil, propane, electric, wood) and the age of the boiler or furnace, and ask for service records;
  • ask for the last 12 months of heating and electric bills. The actual history beats any estimate;
  • for oil or propane, ask who owns the tank, how old it is, and whether there was ever a buried oil tank on the property;
  • have the electrical service evaluated. Older homes may still have knob-and-tube wiring, undersized service, or fuses, and some insurers ask about these; and
  • check attic insulation and air sealing. Older houses often have little of either, which drives heating costs.

7. Taxes, utilities, and the city’s charges

Run the numbers before you’re emotionally committed. In the city, you’ll pay separate city, county, and school taxes, plus water and solid waste charges billed by the Chamberlain. Our property tax guide walks through the published rates, the equalization rate, and how to estimate your bills. For a two-family house, remember that the City’s water and solid waste charges are per unit.

Your pre-offer checklist

  1. Get the Property Condition Disclosure Statement and, for pre-1978 homes, the lead disclosure and pamphlet.
  2. Decide whether to use the 10-day lead inspection period, especially with young children or planned renovations.
  3. Confirm the water source. In the city, ask about the service line material at the address. Outside the city, make a well test (ELAP lab) a contract condition.
  4. Confirm sewer or septic. In Allegany County, schedule the required sanitary survey. In Steuben, hire a septic inspector and check records with the NYSDOH Hornell District Office.
  5. Test for radon during the inspection period.
  6. Inspect the basement and foundation, and look the address up on FEMA’s flood map.
  7. Get 12 months of utility bills and the heating system’s age and service history.
  8. Estimate taxes and city charges from the published rates, and plan to register for the STAR credit after closing.

Official sources

Related: Flood zones in Hornell · Hornell property taxes and assessments · New York septic basics on Practical Finger Lakes

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