When a resident has sold their home and the day of closing draws near, how does one turn over utilities from the seller to the buyer? At least one week before the day of closing, the seller and buyer need to contact Duke Energy. The seller needs to ask for a final reading and explain the home is sold and the new buyer will be contacting them to put the electric service in their name.
The seller should NOT turn off the electric. Simply ask for a final reading and tell the energy company to NOT turn off the electric. "The buyer needs the electric on to do a walk through. A closing can be delayed or worse the buyer is so upset they do not close,” said Broker Marty Pozgay. The same scenario should occur when transferring gas with TECO People’s Gas.
Since the co-op supplies water/sewer, sellers do not need to contact a utility direct. If the electric service is turned off completely, there are more charges that the buyer incurs as well as additional time to have the service turned back on.“Sellers want to be sure that they are no longer charged for service when they don’t live in the home, but they do themselves no favors by completely having the service shut off,” says Pozgay.The same procedure should occur if residents are selling the home themselves.
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