I Always Bring an Empty Cup with Me to Tour Homes (It’s an Expert-Backed Tip!)

If you’re on the hunt for a house, you’ve probably considered all of your non-negotiables: your dream neighborhood, how many bedrooms and bathrooms you need, and the type of outdoor space you want. But there may be one thing you’re overlooking in your home hunt — and if you don’t think about it enough, you could be dealing with something you hate about your house every day, multiple times a day, for as long as you live in it. That thing? Your water. Specifically, how your water tastes, and what your dream home’s water quality may be. 

Water matters a lot. It might not be something you’re thinking about when you’re looking at square footage or your local school district, but when you think about it, you’re going to be tasting the water in your home all the time. That’s why when my husband and I were touring homes, I brought my own cup, and when the opportunity presented itself, I grabbed it out of my purse and gave the water a taste. 

While it might sound a little out of the box, experts agree it’s not a bad idea. Water quality (and taste) can vary depending on whether the home has public water or a well system, and the quality can also depend on the type and quality of the pipes in the home. According to Ryan Dossey, co-founder at SoldFast, “Most public utilities make their water quality reports available easily online,” but he still recommends testing the water during a home tour. 

But what’s the best way to go about it? While it may seem a little forward to bring your own cup, Seamus Nally, the CEO of TurboTenant, says that “bringing your own cup guarantees that you can do this, as not all house tours will have cups available for you to use.”

Dossey, on the other hand, encourages buyers to discuss their water preferences with their agent before they tour homes because he finds that “folks who grew up on well water tend to prefer it, while folks who’ve not experienced it don’t appreciate the smell and feel.”

At an open house, he recommends “asking the listing agent to grab you a glass of water.” And Nally even says that “it would be wise for sellers to make testing the water accessible for buyers, if at the very least to make open houses more attractive and enjoyable.”

As it turns out, tasting the water isn’t entirely about the taste. In fact, Nally says you may be able to use poor-tasting water as leverage for bargaining. If the water quality is poor, he says “you could definitely bring the problem up with the seller and ask them to get the issue inspected or fixed, so you don’t have to pay for or deal with it yourself when the house becomes yours.” You may even be able to negotiate the price down if you want to deal with it yourself.

Dossey says he would have “zero issues with a client getting a glass of water during a walk-through.” But he says, “I think the more ‘formal’ you make it, the more likely you are to run into pushback. [But] during most showings, the owner isn’t present, and it’s likely a non-issue.”

He even goes a step further and recommends that clients wash their hands to test the hardness of the water — especially if they’re new to the area.

If you’re house hunting and aren’t sure what type of water a house has, Dossey points out that you can check out the utility source information under the Facts & Features heading on the listing and it will show whether the home has city or well water. 

“If a home is on well water,” he says, “I would 100% have it tested during the inspection process.” Doing so can prevent any surprises down the road and ensure that everything is in working order before you sign on the dotted line. 

So next time you head out to a showing or an open house, don’t forget to bring a cup!