Wondering about how to shut down your utilities when selling a home in BC?

When selling your home, an important “to do” task is to shut down and pay out your utilities accounts. The big challenge is that there is no consistency in how these accounts are dealt with across the province. You will need to do a little detective work.

TLDR When you sell your home in BC, you are responsible for shutting down your utilities. This includes notifying providers, arranging final meter readings where required, and ensuring all accounts are paid in full. Your BC Notary or conveyancing lawyer may hold back between $1,000 and $2,000 from your sale proceeds until all final bills, property taxes and strata fees have cleared. Not all municipalities provide utilities in the same way, so it’s important to give your BC Notary a complete picture of any non-standard accounts providing services to your property.

Key Takeaways

Notify all public and private utility providers as soon as you have a signed, binding contract.
Some utilities (like strata-billed water or gas) are handled through the strata corporation — no need to close these accounts.
Always request a final meter reading for hydro, gas, or municipal services that require it, and provide proof of payment to your BC Notary.
Expect a sale proceeds holdback until all final bills clear.
Each municipality may have unique utility arrangements — tell your BC Notary about anything unusual.

Three Types of Utilities to Consider

  1. Public Utilities (Municipal):
    Examples include water, sewer, garbage, and recycling. These may be billed to you directly, or through your property taxes. Depending on the municipality and the way they bill, you may have to order a final meter reading.
  2. Private Utilities:
    Hydro (BC Hydro) and natural gas (Fortis) accounts are typically in your name and must be closed. You should arrange a final reading and pay the last bill directly.
  3. Strata-Billed Utilities:
    In some condominiums or townhomes, utilities such as water, hot water, or gas are billed to the strata corporation as a whole. If this applies to you, you do not need to shut down these accounts yourself.

The Sale Proceeds Holdback

Many honest people simply forget to pay their utilities in the mad rush to move. Sometimes folks misundertand the process and think that the buyer will pay this final meter reading. Others cancel their automatic payments too early and their payments bounce. Some really difficult people will simply say “I’ve moved, they won’t find me, so I’m not going to honour that last payment”.

All of which is to say that no one trusts anyone anymore to pay their last utilities bills.

As a result, your BC Notary will usually hold back between $1,000 and $2,000 from your sale proceeds. We do this until we can confirm that all final bills (utilities, property taxes, strata fees) have cleared the bank. This protects both you and the buyer from unpaid balances that could affect the property after closing.

We hold these funds in trust until you have provided us with your proof of payment of these final amounts, at which point we will return the held back funds to you.

Why Final Meter Readings Matter

In municipalities that require them, sellers must arrange a final meter reading for water, hydro, or gas. If your municipality or service region requires a final meter reading, please:

  • Contact the utility provider to request a final reading.
  • Pay any outstanding balance.
  • Provide proof of payment to your notary so the file can be closed smoothly.

If your utilities are provided by a municipality or service region, please contact that municipality or service region to find out how you to about how you go about ordering a final meter reading. Their contact information will be on their most recent invoice to you.

Watch Out for Special Utility Arrangements

Not every municipality provides utilities the same way.

For example, in Lake Country, Altos Utilities manages water services privately. These kinds of private utilities services providers can be hard for buyers to identify, so if you are making payments to a private utilities provider such as Altos, please make sure to identify that in your Property Disclosure Statement so your buyers can make the appropriate arrangements.

Please also make sure you tell us well before closing so we can include these bills in any adjustments that need to be made between you and the buyers.

In Closing

Confused? Your REALTOR® knows your community and can be a great help to you in determining how to close out your utilities. You can also contact us and ask us – once we have received a copy of your Contract of Purchase and Sale, and your Property Disclosure Statement, we can guide you as well.

FAQs – Shutting down utilities when selling a home in BC

No. Only accounts billed directly to you (e.g., BC Hydro, Fortis, city utilities) need to be closed. Strata-billed services remain under the strata corporation.

If a bill surfaces after closing, it can delay the release of your holdback funds and could even cause disputes with the buyer. Always provide your BC Notary with a full list.

Typically, 4–8 weeks. The funds are released once we confirm all final payments have cleared the bank.

No. Some do, some don’t. Always check your city’s website or call their utilities office well before closing.

More reading!

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  • How do I shut down my utilities when selling a home in BC?

    When you sell a home in BC, you’ll need to close or transfer your utility accounts, arrange final meter readings where required, and provide proof of payment. Learn how notaries handle sale proceeds holdbacks, which utilities are public, private, or strata-billed, and what to watch for in your municipality.

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