There are a few things to think about with your water if you are in the process of buying or selling your property.
Purchasing a property and moving in
Property owners
When you move into your new property we will be notified and you will receive a welcome letter from us.
You will receive one water bill each quarter, which will include your fixed drinking water supply and wastewater charges and, where applicable, your metered (volumetric) water charges, based on how much water you use.
So, this means for:
- Metered properties: You’ll receive your bill after each meter reading (approximately every 90 days). Meter readings are taken on a rolling schedule across the district.
- Non-metered properties: You’ll be billed in the first month of each quarter (July, October, January, April).
Tenants
Property owners are billed, not tenants. Tenants won’t receive invoices from Selwyn Water.
Water charges may be discussed as part of a lease agreement. If you’re a tenant and would like to understand how water charges are taken into account when rent is set, we recommend discussing this directly with your property manager or landlord.
Your new account number
When a property changes ownership, we create a new account with a new account number. This also applies if you move to another property within the district.
We do not carry over any information about the previous owner, including billing or payment arrangements.
Your account number will also change if:
- You change the account name from a business name to a personal name
- Your meter is reclassified (to or from residential to business)
- You create a trust (change of ownership).
If you have a MyWater account set up, this will automatically update with the new account number. If you are having any issues, please contact our customer service team.
Selling a property or moving out
Property managers and tenants
You can request an end-of-tenancy water bill using the following form on our MyWater portal. There is no charge for this service.
Request an end-of-tenancy water bill
If you do not already have one, you will be prompted to sign-up for a MyWater account before completing the online form. You do not need to be a Selwyn Water customer or be verified to access our online forms.
If the property has water meter, we are accepting self-reads.
When submitting your form you will need to supply:
- The property address
- The end of tenancy date
- The water meter reading (if the property has a water meter)
- A clear photo of the water meter taken on the end-of-tenancy date (if the property has a water meter)
Find out more about how to read a water meter below.
Once we receive your form, we will arrange an out-of-cycle water bill to be sent.
Depending on the services connected to the property, the bill may include:
- Fixed daily drinking water charges
- Fixed daily wastewater charges
- Metered water usage charges
- Restricted water unit charges
These charges remain the responsibility of the property owner (or the property manager where they have been authorised to receive the owner's bill) to pay.
Any costs to be recovered from a tenant must be on-charged in accordance with the terms of the tenancy agreement. Any remaining charges not paid for by the tenant must be paid as part of this out-of-cycle bill.
Property owners
You don’t need to contact us. Your solicitor will contact us to close your old account.
As the property owner, it’s your responsibility to check that your solicitor has:
- Advised us of the settlement date
- Requested a final water bill (and water meter reading if applicable)
- Received and paid the final bill on your behalf.
Once your solicitor has completed all of this, you can concentrate on moving day.
Solicitors
Request a final water bill as part of a property settlement by submitting the following form on our MyWater portal.
Request a final water bill for a property settlement
If you do not already have one, you will be prompted to sign-up for a MyWater account before completing the online form. You do not need to be a Selwyn Water customer or be verified to access our online forms.
For properties with a water meter, submitting this form will generate a request for a final meter reading.
The final bill will include water usage (if applicable). As fixed drinking water and wastewater charges are paid in advance for the quarter, we will provide a pro-rated breakdown of fixed charges as at the settlement date, for the quarter.
Please note: We are unable to provide an out-of-cycle bill for fixed charges.
In line with our Fees and Charges Schedule the charge for this service is $155 (incl. GST). We do not accept self-reads of water meters for final bills relating to property settlements.
How to read a water meter
1. Find your meter
- Your water meter is in a blue toby box inset into the ground, usually located near the roadside at the front of your property.
- The box has a small hole at one side where you can insert a screwdriver to flip it open.
- Inside the box your water meter may have a lid which can be opened to show the dial.
2. Read your meter
- On the water meter the black numbers show the number of complete water units that have been used.
- 1 unit = 1 cubic metre of water (or 1,000 litres of water, around 100 buckets).
- Red numbers show smaller units (see diagram below).
- The water meter dial is cumulative, so it doesn’t reset itself to zero each year.
- You may want to make a note of your current water meter reading, so you can compare your water use next time you check your meter.
- We recommend you check your water meter regularly, especially in summer and autumn when households use the most water for lawns and gardens, so you can manage your water costs.