Just generally, you can get a report of your municipal water testing. The biggest safety variable that I would be worried about testing at home for is lead in the pipes between me and the treatment plant. That includes my house/building and the municipal pipes.
Now taste, that's a to each their own situation. Sulfury water is my limit for sure. No thanks!
Yes, and you have to dig deep in some places to get below the frost with your foundation. In those places a basement makes sense because you're digging that far either way. Texas frosts don't get very deep, so you're able to have a shallower foundation making a basement just an extra cost.