All Forum Posts by: Adri T.

They absolutely will go after you. Maybe not directly but they'll shut off the gas to the house. When you get new tenants, the gas company will offer to turn their gas back on....once the outstanding debt is paid....

This depends on the state. In Ohio, for example, utilities belong to the property, such that anything unpaid can be filed against the property as a tax lien. Down where I am in Tennessee, and North Carolina, utilities belong to the applicant, meaning that a run-off is the utility's problem - i.e., they cannot deny service because the previous occupant left a bill.

The OP needs to see what the law is in Pennsylvania.

In PA, if a utility is provided by the municipality, then a municipal lien for that unpaid utility is permitted under PA law. Since the OP is from a suburb of Philadelphia, it's quite possible that the property is located inside the City of Philadelphia - and if that's the case, natural gas service in Philadelphia is provided by PGW and that is a municipality owned utility so a lien is a definite possibility for unpaid gas. PGW has a Landlord Cooperation Program where a participating landlord can avoid a lien, but in the case of owner occupied properties (like some foreclosures), expect the lien.

Now, natural gas in the Philadelphia suburbs is not supplied by PGW (my suburban properties have PECO gas), so not a municipality owned utility service and as such they cannot lien a rental property when the tenant has not paid the gas bill (and PECO provides electric too on one single bill, so electricity also was not paid in their service areas). But those utilities will make it harder to get service turned back on, usually they will require a deposit to be paid up front.

So it depends on where the property in question is located, and which utility company is the provider.

I spoke with a PECO rep yesterday, who informed that PECO policy is not to lien a property. (I'd feel more comfortable if I saw that in writing, so I will continue to look into it) ...

Lesson learned. I never would have thought it would be necessary to follow up with the utilities to make sure they are billing my tenants, or have to follow up with my tenants to make sure they are receiving a bill.

PECO can't put a lien on your rental property unless the utility service there is in the name of the owner. PGW would be able to lien a rental property no matter whose name is on the PGW bill.

At every tenant turnover, you have to verify that all utility service is switched to the tenant's name before you give the tenant any keys - and tell tenant applicants that no keys will be given until you have verified utility bills are in tenant's name.

Good advice @Steve Babiak , to avoid a situation with them moving in, then finding out they cannot turn utilities on into their name.

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Originally posted by @Steve Babiak:

Originally posted by @JD Martin:

Originally posted by @Russell Gronsky:

The OP needs to see what the law is in Pennsylvania.

So it depends on where the property in question is located, and which utility company is the provider.

I spoke with a PECO rep yesterday, who informed that PECO policy is not to lien a property. (I'd feel more comfortable if I saw that in writing, so I will continue to look into it) They also already turned service on for the new tenants. So I may have avoided that issue, for now.

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Thanks. I will start looking into PA code.

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My tenants, who recently moved out, were informed that the gas utility company failed to bill them for the term of their lease and they owe them a few $thousand.

Would you be concerned, as the property owner, that the utility company might come after you for the money if the tenants don't pay?

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All Forum Posts by: Adri T.

Adri T. has started 1 posts and replied 4 times.

Post: Utilities

Post: Utilities

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