Selling a Home in Marin County: Point-of-Sale Requirements by Town
Marin County has no single point-of-sale checklist: what a seller must order depends on the town, the sanitary district and the fire agency that serve the address. The recurring items are a city or town building-records report (Sausalito, Belvedere, Tiburon, Mill Valley, Corte Madera, Ross and San Rafael), a private sewer lateral inspection or compliance certificate (Mill Valley, Sausalito, Sanitary District No. 5, Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District, Corte Madera’s Sanitary District No. 2 and Ross Valley Sanitary District), a local fire resale inspection (Larkspur, Corte Madera, Ross and Fairfax) and, in High or Very High fire zones, an AB 38 defensible space inspection.
Several of these take two weeks or more and some must be on file before the town will release its report, so the time to order them is when you set a listing date, not after you accept an offer. This page collects what each agency publishes, as of October 2026, and says plainly where we could not confirm a rule. Statewide items such as smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and water heater bracing are covered separately in our California point-of-sale requirements checklist.
Marin requirements at a glance
| Town | Building-records report | Sewer lateral at sale | Fire resale or AB 38 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sausalito | Required (MC 8.32.010) | Approved sewer video required on all residential resales | AB 38 in High or Very High zones; use the county fire lookup |
| Belvedere | Required, with inspection (MC 16.24.030) | Yes, Sanitary District No. 5 | AB 38 if in a High or Very High zone; ask the fire district |
| Tiburon | Required Residential Building Report | Yes east of Gilmartin Drive (Sanitary District No. 5); elsewhere check with the district | Check with Tiburon Fire |
| Mill Valley | Required before sale; copy to the buyer before closing (MC Chapter 20.70) | Yes, before title transfers (MC 17.04.270) | AB 38 in High or Very High zones; use the county fire lookup |
| Larkspur and Greenbrae | Fire report in the WUI (MC 15.40.045) | Ross Valley Sanitary District compliance certificate within 90 days of closing | Central Marin Fire resale inspection in the WUI |
| Corte Madera | Town records report plus Central Marin Fire report, per the town code (Chapter 15.30) | Yes, Sanitary District No. 2 inspection before title transfers, per the town code (Chapter 21.22) | Central Marin Fire resale inspection in the WUI |
| Ross | Required before listing (RMC 15.32.030) | Ross Valley Sanitary District compliance certificate within 90 days of closing | Ross Valley Fire resale inspection |
| Fairfax | Check with the town | Ross Valley Sanitary District compliance certificate within 90 days of closing | Ross Valley Fire resale inspection |
| San Anselmo | Check with the town | Ross Valley Sanitary District compliance certificate within 90 days of closing | Fire resale no longer required; AB 38 still applies in High or Very High zones |
| San Rafael | City resale report before close of escrow; copy goes to the buyer | Yes in Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District areas; elsewhere check | AB 38 through San Rafael Fire |
| Novato | Check with the city | No sale rule found on Novato Sanitary District’s pages; confirm with the district | AB 38 in High or Very High zones; ask Novato Fire |
| Unincorporated Marin | No county records report found | Depends on the sanitary district; many West Marin homes are on septic | Marin County Fire AB 38 lookup |
“Check with” means we could not confirm the rule on the agency’s own site. It is not a statement that no rule exists. Our Marin County guide compares the towns, and each town page, such as Mill Valley and Sausalito, has more on local zoning, hazards and services.
Building-records and resale reports by town
These reports compare the town’s permit record with the house you’re selling. Some involve an inspector at the door; others are a records search only.
Sausalito
Before a residential building is sold or exchanged, the owner or agent must get a Residential Building Record Report from the city under Municipal Code 8.32.010. It shows the authorized use, occupancy and zoning, the city doesn’t conduct a physical inspection, and you should allow at least two weeks. The report must be delivered to the buyer before the sale closes, and the city won’t release it until an approved sewer video is on file (see below).
Belvedere
Belvedere‘s report has two parts: a records review of authorized use, occupancy and zoning, and an inspection for potentially hazardous conditions or code violations. The city has 30 days to issue it after a complete application, and it is valid for up to 12 months. The city’s seller checklist pairs it with a sewer lateral inspection for Sanitary District No. 5.
Tiburon
The Town of Tiburon requires a report before any dwelling unit is sold or exchanged. The fee is $250 for a single-family home, or $250 for the first unit and $75 for each additional unit. Reports are typically ready within 10 days of the inspection, and mandatory life-safety items must be corrected within 30 days of the close of escrow; advisory items are optional. The town suggests scheduling as soon as the property is listed.
Mill Valley
Municipal Code Chapter 20.70 requires the owner or agent to get a city report of the property’s authorized use, occupancy and zoning before a residential building is sold or exchanged, and to deliver it to the buyer before the sale closes. The report says it is not a city representation of legal compliance. Transfers without valuable consideration and transfers between co-owners are exempt. The City Council sets the fee by resolution, so ask the city for the current amount.
Corte Madera
Per the town code (Chapter 15.30), the owner or agent must get a town report on authorized use, occupancy and zoning before selling a residential building or site, plus a report from Central Marin Fire covering the fire hazard zone, defensible space and ember-vulnerable features. Both go to the buyer before closing, and the title company or escrow must get the buyer’s written acknowledgment of receipt. We read the code on an unofficial online copy because the town’s site would not load, so confirm the current fees and process with the Town before you list.
Ross
In Ross, Municipal Code 15.32.030 requires the report before listing a home, or before signing a sale agreement if there is no listing, and it is valid for up to six months. The town’s sample report lists building items (electrical, furnace, water heater, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, guardrails and spark arresters) and public works items such as drainage and driveway culverts, with six months to complete building corrections and 60 days for public works corrections.
San Rafael
A resale report must be requested and completed before the close of escrow whenever residential property changes ownership, including single-family homes, duplexes, apartment buildings, condos and townhouses; the first sale of a new home and mobile home sales are excepted. Fees effective July 1, 2025 are $383 for a single-family home or condo and $766 for a duplex. The city contacts you within seven business days of the application to schedule the inspection, usually inspects within 10 business days and aims to deliver the report within three business days after that. A report is valid for six months and can be extended once, by three months, on written request. A copy must be given to the buyer, who signs a statement confirming receipt. The city won’t hold up a sale over open items: any required actions, permits, fees or penalties become the buyer’s legal responsibility.
Sewer lateral inspections at sale
The lateral is the private pipe from the house to the public sewer. Several Marin agencies require a video inspection at sale and repairs if it leaks or takes in rainwater.
Mill Valley
Under Municipal Code 17.04.270, the seller must give the City Engineer a licensed plumber’s report, including a closed-circuit TV inspection, before title transfers, and disclose the requirement to the buyer in writing. The city issues a notice to repair within three business days of the report and allows 180 days for corrections. Exemptions cover laterals installed or replaced within 20 years, inspections or permitted repairs within three years, sales within a common interest development and qualifying shared laterals. If the seller doesn’t provide the report, the buyer must do so within 30 days after the transfer.
Sausalito and Marin City
Sausalito requires an approved sewer video on all residential resales, and an approved video is valid for three years. Since August 22, 2025 the Sausalito Marin City Sanitary District owns and operates the city’s sewer collection system, so new video submittals go to the district. The city warns that reviews take a minimum of two weeks.
Belvedere and eastern Tiburon (Sanitary District No. 5)
The district serves Belvedere and Tiburon east of Gilmartin Drive. Under Ordinance 2014-02a, buying or selling a property triggers a CCTV inspection submitted online; a lateral that is free of leaks gets a compliance permit. Laterals installed or replaced within 20 years, or inspected within three years with repairs made, are exempt. The residential permit is $235 (fees effective October 21, 2024).
Corte Madera (Sanitary District No. 2)
Per the town code (Chapter 21.22), when a property is sold, including a transfer through a trust or within a family, the seller must have the private lateral inspected before title transfers. A licensed plumber prepares the report, with a televised video and a declaration under penalty of perjury. Any required repair must be completed within 180 days of the close of sale, and who pays is left to buyer and seller. If the seller skips the inspection, the district requires the new owner to inspect and repair. A lateral replaced within the prior three years, or inspected and repaired under permit in that time, is exempt. As with the town report, we read this on an unofficial copy of the code, so confirm current fees and process with the Town and the district.
Ross Valley Sanitary District (Larkspur, Ross, Fairfax and San Anselmo)
Since January 1, 2015, buying or selling a property in the district requires a sewer lateral Certificate of Compliance. Buyer and seller negotiate who obtains it, and whoever takes it on has 90 days from the close of escrow. The process starts with a contractor’s video inspection; the contractor then pulls the district sewer permit, and a district inspector issues the certificate after the lateral passes a final inspection and pressure test, with a reinspection if it fails. The district reviews videos only as part of a permit application. Remodels over $75,000 and added bathrooms also trigger the requirement. If you think the property already complies, the district asks you to call 415-259-2949 to check for a passed final inspection in the last 20 years. It also offers lateral grants and loans of up to $1,500 that are not based on income.
North San Rafael (Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District)
The district serves Terra Linda, San Rafael Meadows, Marinwood and Lucas Valley. Its ordinance requires the seller to submit a lateral inspection report before the close of escrow, with exemptions for laterals installed or replaced within 20 years and for transfers such as inheritances, transfers between spouses and transfers into a revocable trust. Illegal connections must be removed within 90 days. Its December 2023 application lists a $250 standard review (10 business days) or $500 expedited (5 business days).
Districts where we found no sale rule
We did not find a point-of-sale lateral rule on the pages we could open for Novato Sanitary District. Check with the district before listing.
Diamond may refer you to partners we work with; you’re free to choose any provider. Each district sets its own submittal format (Las Gallinas Valley, for example, asks for the video on a link or USB drive and not on YouTube), so share the requirements with the plumber before the camera goes in.
Fire inspections: AB 38 and local resale inspections
State law requires defensible space documentation for homes in High or Very High fire hazard zones, as explained in our AB 38 inspection guide. Marin County Fire’s lookup tool routes an address to the right agency and notes that some local fire jurisdictions conduct resale inspections regardless of AB 38.
- Central Marin Fire (Larkspur, including Greenbrae, and Corte Madera): resale inspection for single-family homes in the wildland-urban interface; $211 in 2026; done within 7 to 10 business days, with no appointment; must pass within six months before a sales contract. Larkspur’s rule, Municipal Code 15.40.045, took effect January 7, 2026. Individual condos and townhouses are exempt.
- Ross Valley Fire (Ross and Fairfax): resale inspection of single-family homes listed for sale; $190; completed within one week and emailed. The report and code requirements go into the seller’s disclosures. San Anselmo no longer requires it.
- Southern Marin Fire: AB 38 inspections are exterior only and need access to the entire property.
- San Rafael Fire: many San Rafael properties are in the local High zone; the department provides the documentation for escrow and advises booking early.
- Tiburon Fire and Novato Fire: we could not confirm a resale or AB 38 process on their sites; contact them directly.
Transfer tax: county, San Rafael and Measure W
A Marin sale pays the county documentary transfer tax of $0.55 per $500 of value, which works out to $1.10 per $1,000. The Assessor-Recorder lists one city tax on top of that: San Rafael, at $2.00 per $1,000 of full value.
San Rafael’s Measure W on the November 3, 2026 ballot would raise the city rate from 0.2% to 1%, or $10 per $1,000. It needs a simple majority and would take effect ten days after the City Council certifies the election results. Check the outcome before you price a San Rafael home or draft the counter on costs.
In Diamond’s North Bay markets the seller customarily pays the transfer tax, but it is negotiable and local custom varies; the measure’s own findings describe payment as the joint responsibility of the parties. Our California transfer tax guide has the statewide picture, and the San Rafael community guide covers the city in more depth.
Septic systems and West Marin
Most of West Marin and pockets of eastern Marin use individual septic systems, according to the county. The County is updating its septic rules, the Local Agency Management Plan, with community meetings held in spring 2026, and the State Water Board must approve the final regulations. The county materials we reviewed don’t describe a point-of-sale septic inspection, so confirm with the Community Development Agency whether any applies to your parcel.
Stinson Beach is the exception to that. Homes there are served by onsite systems regulated by the Stinson Beach County Water District, and under its Title IV code each Discharge Permit is issued to a specific property, recorded with the County Recorder, and “shall be reissued in cases of parcel ownership change” (Section 4.06.610). The district’s fee schedule lists a $45 change-of-ownership administrative fee and $200 to reissue a recorded discharge permit, so call the district before you list. Our Stinson Beach guide covers the rest of the town’s rules.
Even without a mandate, buyers of septic homes commonly ask for an inspection and pumping records, so having them ready shortens the contingency period. See our guides to Marin septic systems and well and septic inspections.
Short-term rental licenses at sale
In unincorporated Marin, a short-term rental license under County Code Chapter 5.41 ends automatically when the property changes hands (apart from one transfer to a spouse or children), so a buyer applies fresh and may join a waitlist where the township’s cap is full. The county’s October 2026 administrative procedures set the township caps, for example 192 licenses in Stinson Beach and 204 in Dillon Beach. If you have been collecting transient occupancy tax, the county Department of Finance asks operators who sell to notify the Tax Collector in writing 30 days before the sale.
The order to do things in
- Identify the agencies: confirm whether the address is in a city, a town or unincorporated Marin, then the sanitary district and fire agency. The county’s fire lookup tool helps with the fire agency.
- Order the sewer video first: in Sausalito the town report waits on an approved video, and district reviews run from five business days to two weeks or more.
- Apply for the building-records report: Belvedere allows itself 30 days, Sausalito asks for two weeks and Tiburon about 10 days after inspection.
- Book fire inspections: clear vegetation first, then request the AB 38 or local resale inspection so it lands inside the six-month window.
- Price corrections: get bids for any lateral repair or required correction before listing so you can decide whether to fix, credit or disclose.
- Assemble disclosures: add every report to the disclosure package described in our California seller disclosures guide.
- Calendar the after-closing items: Tiburon’s 30-day corrections, Ross Valley Sanitary District’s 90-day compliance window and Corte Madera’s 180-day lateral repair deadline can fall to whoever owns the home.
This is general information, not legal advice; talk to a California real estate attorney about your situation.
Questions people ask
Do I need a sewer lateral inspection to sell a house in Marin?
In Mill Valley, Sausalito, Belvedere, eastern Tiburon, Corte Madera and the Ross Valley and Las Gallinas Valley sanitary districts, yes. In Ross Valley it takes the form of a compliance certificate due within 90 days of closing. Elsewhere it depends on the district, so ask before you list.
Who pays for the Marin resale inspections?
The seller orders and usually pays for the town report and most sale-triggered inspections because the duty is the seller’s. Ross Valley Sanitary District leaves its compliance certificate to buyer and seller to negotiate, and who pays for repairs the reports turn up is negotiable too.
How long does a Sausalito resale report take?
The city asks you to allow at least two weeks, and it won’t release the report until an approved sewer video is on file. The video review alone takes at least two weeks.
Does San Rafael have a transfer tax?
Yes: $2.00 per $1,000 of full value on top of the county’s $1.10 per $1,000. Measure W on the November 3, 2026 ballot would raise the city rate to 1%.
Are condos exempt from Marin point-of-sale inspections?
Some are. Mill Valley exempts sales in common interest developments from its lateral rule, and Central Marin Fire exempts individual condos and townhouses. San Rafael’s resale report expressly covers condos and townhouses, and other agencies don’t publish a condo exemption.
Can the buyer take over a required inspection or repair?
Sometimes. Mill Valley’s code makes the buyer responsible if the seller doesn’t provide the lateral report before transfer, Corte Madera’s district requires the new owner to inspect if the seller didn’t, Ross Valley Sanitary District lets the parties negotiate who gets the certificate, and AB 38 allows a written agreement for the buyer to obtain documentation after closing.
Does Marin County require a septic inspection at sale?
The county materials we reviewed don’t describe one, and the county’s septic rules are being updated. Check with the Community Development Agency for your parcel.
If you’re planning a Marin sale, we can work out which reports apply to your address and when to order them. Start with our Marin County seller services.
Sources & notes
- City of Sausalito: Resale requirements (Residential Building Record Report and sewer video)
- City of Sausalito: Sewer lateral inspection
- City of Belvedere: What does the City require when I sell my home?
- City of Belvedere Municipal Code 16.24.030
- Town of Tiburon: Residential Resale Reports
- Town of Ross: Residential Building Report application
- Town of Ross: Sample Report of Residential Building Record
- City of San Rafael: What is a resale report?
- City of San Rafael: Residential Building Record (resale report)
- City of Mill Valley Municipal Code Chapter 20.70: Residential building record (eCode360)
- City of Mill Valley Municipal Code 17.04.270 (eCode360)
- Corte Madera Municipal Code Chapter 15.30, Reports of residential building records (GoCodebook, unofficial copy)
- Corte Madera Municipal Code Chapter 21.22, Sanitary District No. 2 (GoCodebook, unofficial copy)
- Sanitary District No. 5 of Marin County: Sewer lateral inspections
- Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District: Sewer lateral ordinance (Title 2, Chapter 9)
- Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District: Sewer lateral inspection application (12/2023)
- Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District: Our service area
- Novato Sanitary District: Overview of side sewer requirements
- Ross Valley Sanitary District: Compliance (Certificate of Compliance)
- Town of Fairfax: Ross Valley Sanitary District grants and loans for sewer lateral work
- Central Marin Fire: Resale inspections
- City of Larkspur Municipal Code 15.40.045
- Ross Valley Fire Department: Resale inspections
- Marin County Fire: What is an AB-38 inspection?
- City of San Rafael: What is an AB-38 inspection?
- Southern Marin Fire Protection District: Request an inspection
- Tiburon Fire Protection District: Fire inspections
- Marin County Assessor-Recorder: Fees (documentary transfer tax)
- Marin County Elections: Measure W (City of San Rafael), November 3, 2026
- Marin County Elections: Measure W full text
- County of Marin: Questions about septic systems? County has answers (Mar. 27, 2026)
- Stinson Beach County Water District: Title IV Onsite Wastewater Management Code
- Stinson Beach County Water District: Services, rates and fees
- Marin County CDA: Short-term rental administrative procedures (October 2026)
- Marin County Department of Finance: Transient occupancy tax, sell, transfer or terminate operations
Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.
