Pembroke is home base for J. Bean Excavation. Our shop is at 10 Harvard St, so most Pembroke inspections can be scheduled quickly. Pembroke has its own Title 5 rules on top of the state code, and several of them change what happens when a house is sold.
Title 5 inspections in Pembroke
Standard Title 5
$425- Required for home sales and transfers
- Town records and water usage pulled for you
- Report filed with your Board of Health
Confidential System Evaluation
$500- Full camera inspection of the lines
- Private report to you. Nothing filed with the town
- Find problems on your own timeline, before you list
Not an official Title 5 inspection. It can't be used for a sale or transfer.
Pembroke rules that go beyond state Title 5
- Cesspools are an automatic failure when a property is conveyed (effective May 6, 2019).
- If an inspection comes back as a Conditional Pass, the repairs must be finished before the property transfers.
- The Board of Health must be told the address and date of every Title 5 inspection in advance, and a Health Agent confirms any failure in person.
- Inspectors submit six dated photos with each report, including the tank with a measuring stick, the effluent filter, the inlet tee and the distribution box.
- Leach fields must be at least 75 ft from wetlands, salt marsh and banks, more than the state requires.
- Seasonal high groundwater observations must cover February, March and April.
What this means for you
If you're selling in Pembroke, schedule the inspection early. A cesspool or a conditional pass has to be dealt with before closing, not after, so you want time to get repairs done without pushing your date.
Pembroke Board of Health
Pembroke Board of Health
Town Hall, 100 Center Street, Room 4, Pembroke, MA 02359
Phone: 781-293-2718
Septic and Title 5 information from the town
Summarized from the town's published regulations as of September 2026. Rules change, so always confirm current requirements with the Board of Health.
If your Pembroke system needs work
A failed inspection or a Conditional Pass isn't the end of the road. J. Bean Excavation handles septic repairs and full replacements, working with your engineer and the Pembroke Board of Health. We also do drainage and land clearing.
Have questions first? See the Title 5 FAQ.