If you heard that the Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District eased its drought restrictions this summer, you might assume the paperwork on your well got simpler too. It didn't. Two unrelated clocks are running in Kendall County real estate right now, and mixing them up is the kind of mistake that surfaces during an option period, not before one.
The first clock is the weather. On July 13, 2026, the Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District's board voted to move the county from Stage 3 down to Stage 2 drought restrictions, pointing to improving groundwater levels and recent rainfall. The second clock is the law. As of July 1, 2026, every Texas seller, Boerne included, has to complete a brand-new state disclosure form devoted entirely to water rights. One of these developments loosens with the next good rain. The other is now permanent paperwork on any transaction touching a well, and it isn't going anywhere when the drought does.
Two Numbers Moving in Opposite Directions
| What changed | Why it doesn't help sellers | |
|---|---|---|
| Drought stage | Cow Creek moved from Stage 3 to Stage 2 on July 13, 2026 | Stage designations track rainfall and aquifer levels, not the legal status of a well |
| Disclosure law | TREC Form 61-0 became mandatory July 1, 2026 | Applies to every eligible sale regardless of whether the county is in Stage 1 or Stage 4 |
The structural rules that Cow Creek uses to manage groundwater in the county don't move with the drought stage at all. They're set by district rule, not by rainfall. A non-exempt well requires a minimum six-acre tract under the district's well-density framework, and agricultural wells on ten acres or larger are treated on their own track, exempt from the district's per-acre pumping formula but capped at 25,000 gallons a day, according to reporting on the district's rulemaking. Easing from Stage 3 to Stage 2 changes how much water a permitted well can pump this month. It does not touch the tract-size math or the permit category a property falls into, and that's exactly the distinction the new disclosure form forces sellers to confront.
What the New State Form Actually Asks You to Say
Form 61-0 is a standalone document, separate from the main Seller's Disclosure Notice that Texas sellers have filled out for years. It asks direct questions that most sellers on municipal water can answer in a few seconds and check "none." In Kendall County, the questions carry more weight:
- Whether the property has a private water well, and what the seller knows about its condition
- Whether the property sits inside a groundwater conservation district's boundaries and what that means for well permitting
- Whether there are surface water rights tied to a creek, pond, or stretch of river on the property
- Whether the seller knows of any disputes or pending claims over water access
- Whether the seller knows of an old, unused, or inactive well anywhere on the property, even one that hasn't been used in years
That last item catches people off guard. A lot of Hill Country properties changed hands from earlier well-only setups before connecting to municipal or later wells, and an abandoned well doesn't stop being disclosable just because nobody has touched it in a decade. If a seller knows about it, it goes on the form.
Why This Lands Harder Here Than in Most of Texas
For a seller in a subdivision on city water, this new form is a formality. For a seller on acreage outside Boerne's city limits, it's a real conversation, because the water source itself is regulated by a different body than the one that governs municipal customers.
Inside Boerne's city limits, water restrictions come from the city's own drought contingency ordinance, and that ordinance leans on surface water. Boerne has said publicly that only about a quarter of its supply comes from groundwater, with the rest arriving from Boerne City Lake and Canyon Lake through the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority. That's why the city can sit at a different restriction stage than the aquifer district next door. Outside city limits, on a private well, none of that surface-water buffer applies. Cow Creek's stage is the one that governs the property, and Cow Creek's structural rules, the tract-size minimums and the pumping caps, govern it regardless of what stage the district happens to be in this month.
That distinction matters at the negotiating table. A buyer who assumes "Stage 2" means a comfortable water position for a well property is reading the wrong number. The number that actually matters is the district's permit category for that specific tract, and that's not something the drought stage tells you.
The Septic Half Nobody Mentions
Water isn't the only system Kendall County treats differently than a typical suburban sale. Aerobic septic systems in the county require an Affidavit to the Public, a document that has to be recorded with the Kendall County Clerk's office, along with a maintenance contract signed by the property owner and provided by the licensed installer. The county's permitting authority then has up to 30 days to approve or deny any new application. If a system went in years ago and the affidavit was never recorded, or the maintenance contract lapsed, that's a gap a title search or a sharp buyer's agent will find, and it's better found by the seller first.
What It Costs to Find Out You Have a Problem
None of this is theoretical for anyone heading into an option period. Wells in this part of the Trinity Aquifer typically run 200 to 400 feet deep, and industry data from the Texas Water Development Board puts the cost of drilling a new one in the $15,000 to $30,000 range. Septic tells a similar story: a standard system is a modest expense, but soil that fails a perc test can push an engineered system into the $25,000 to $45,000 range. Neither number is something a seller wants a buyer discovering for the first time during inspection, with the option period clock already running and no room left to plan for it.
A seller who already knows the well's permit history, the septic system's paperwork status, and the district's classification for the tract walks into that conversation from a position of strength instead of catching up to it. That's the entire point of the new form. It moves what used to be a mid-negotiation surprise to the front of the transaction, where a seller can control the story.
FAQ
Does the new water disclosure form apply if my Boerne home is on city water? Yes, the form is required for eligible residential sales statewide as of July 1, 2026. Most sellers on municipal water will answer "none" or "not applicable" to most items, but the form still has to be completed and delivered.
What if I'm not sure whether there's an old, unused well on my property? The disclosure only requires you to share what you actually know. Texas law doesn't require sellers to go investigate or search for a well they have no knowledge of, but if you do know about one, even an inactive one, it needs to be on the form.
Does Cow Creek's move from Stage 3 to Stage 2 mean it's easier to get a new well permit right now? No. Drought stages govern how much water existing permitted wells can pump in the short term. They don't change the district's tract-size minimums or its permit categories, which are set separately and reviewed on their own timeline.
How do I find out my property's status with Cow Creek before I list? The district's office is located at 9 Toepperwein Road in Boerne, and its board meets the second Monday of most months. For anyone weighing a sale, that's the place to confirm a well's registration and permit category before it becomes a question during someone else's option period.
If you're weighing a sale of acreage or a well-served property anywhere in the Boerne market, the paperwork side of this transaction has gotten more specific this year, not less. Harkin Realty works these Hill Country transactions regularly and can walk you through what your property's water and septic history actually means before a buyer's agent asks. Start with a free, no-obligation home valuation and let's talk through what your property's water and septic paperwork looks like before it ever hits the market.
