diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index 65f22d4..5156803 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -49,7 +49,7 @@ Endpoints inject repositories with `FromDI(Repository)` from `modern_di_fastapi`
 
 - `app/models.py` — `BigIntAuditBase` from `advanced_alchemy` (auto `id`, `created_at`, `updated_at`). The module aliases `orm_registry.metadata` onto `orm.DeclarativeBase.metadata` so Alembic autogenerate sees both. New models go here.
 - `app/repositories.py` — Subclass `SQLAlchemyAsyncRepositoryService[Model]` with a nested `BaseRepository(SQLAlchemyAsyncRepository[Model])`. Routes use the service methods (`list`, `get_one_or_none`, `create`, `update`, `create_many`, `upsert_many`).
-- `app/resources/db.py` — `CustomAsyncSession.close()` does `expunge_all()` instead of closing when bound to an `AsyncConnection`. This is what enables the test rollback pattern below — do not "fix" it.
+- `app/resources/db.py` — `create_session` passes `join_transaction_mode="create_savepoint"`. This is inert in production (the session binds to an engine) but enables the test rollback pattern below: when a test binds the session to a connection already in a transaction, the session owns its own savepoint so the outer transaction survives commits — do not "fix" it.
 - `migrations/env.py` swaps the asyncpg driver for the sync `postgresql` driver and uses `app.models.METADATA` as `target_metadata`.
 
 ### Settings
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ Endpoints inject repositories with `FromDI(Repository)` from `modern_di_fastapi`
 `tests/conftest.py` provides the test isolation pattern — read it before adding fixtures:
 
 - `app` fixture builds a fresh app via `LifespanManager`.
-- `db_session` opens a connection, begins a transaction, begins a nested savepoint, and **overrides `Dependencies.database_engine`** with the connection itself. The nested savepoint is rolled back at teardown so each test starts clean. This is why `CustomAsyncSession.close` must `expunge_all` rather than close — closing would commit the outer transaction.
+- `db_session` opens a connection, begins a transaction, and **overrides `Dependencies.database_engine`** with the connection itself. Each session built against that connection uses `join_transaction_mode="create_savepoint"`, so `auto_commit` releases the session's own savepoint while the outer transaction is rolled back at teardown — each test starts clean.
 - `set_async_session_in_base_sqlalchemy_factory` wires `db_session` into `SQLAlchemyFactory.__async_session__` so `polyfactory` factories in `tests/factories.py` (`DeckModelFactory`, `CardModelFactory`) persist via the rolled-back session. Test modules that use these factories opt in with `pytestmark = [pytest.mark.usefixtures("set_async_session_in_base_sqlalchemy_factory")]`.
 
 `pytest.ini_options` sets `asyncio_mode = "auto"` — async tests do not need `@pytest.mark.asyncio`. Coverage runs by default (`--cov=. --cov-report term-missing`).
diff --git a/app/resources/db.py b/app/resources/db.py
index c2723d5..99944bc 100644
--- a/app/resources/db.py
+++ b/app/resources/db.py
@@ -25,16 +25,16 @@ async def close_sa_engine(engine: sa.AsyncEngine) -> None:
     await engine.dispose()
 
 
-class CustomAsyncSession(sa.AsyncSession):
-    async def close(self) -> None:
-        if isinstance(self.bind, sa.AsyncConnection):
-            return self.expunge_all()
-
-        return await super().close()
-
-
 def create_session(engine: sa.AsyncEngine) -> sa.AsyncSession:
-    return CustomAsyncSession(engine, expire_on_commit=False, autoflush=False)
+    # join_transaction_mode is inert in production (the session binds to an engine); when tests bind
+    # the session to a connection already in a transaction, it makes the session own a savepoint so
+    # the outer transaction survives commits and the per-test rollback stays clean.
+    return sa.AsyncSession(
+        engine,
+        expire_on_commit=False,
+        autoflush=False,
+        join_transaction_mode="create_savepoint",
+    )
 
 
 async def close_session(session: sa.AsyncSession) -> None:
diff --git a/tests/conftest.py b/tests/conftest.py
index f788758..314e500 100644
--- a/tests/conftest.py
+++ b/tests/conftest.py
@@ -47,11 +47,15 @@ async def db_session(di_container: modern_di.Container) -> typing.AsyncIterator[
     engine = create_sa_engine()
     connection = await engine.connect()
     transaction = await connection.begin()
-    await connection.begin_nested()
     di_container.override(ioc.Dependencies.database_engine, connection)
 
     try:
-        yield AsyncSession(connection, expire_on_commit=False, autoflush=False)
+        yield AsyncSession(
+            connection,
+            expire_on_commit=False,
+            autoflush=False,
+            join_transaction_mode="create_savepoint",
+        )
     finally:
         if connection.in_transaction():
             await transaction.rollback()