Setting Up Utilities When You Move to a Richmond-Area Home: Electric, Gas, Water and Sewer by Locality

Published October 13, 2026. Written by the Mission Realty Team.

Utilities in the Richmond area do not come from one company. Electric and natural gas have their own providers, and water, sewer and sometimes trash depend on whether the address sits in the City of Richmond, Henrico County, Chesterfield County, Hanover County, Goochland County or Powhatan County. Below is what each provider’s own page said when we read it in October 2026, then an order of operations for your closing date. Fees and phone numbers change, so confirm them on the provider page.

One habit saves most of the guesswork: ask for the seller’s recent bills. They name each provider and show whether water and sewer are public or a well and septic tank.

Electric service with Dominion Energy Virginia

Dominion Energy Virginia runs the start-service request online. Its page says to gather the new street address, your full legal name, a Social Security number and an email address, and that the meter number helps but is not required. A $5.70 connection charge appears on your first bill, and a security deposit is required for new customers and for anyone without a good payment history in the last 12 months.

The page does not name a minimum notice period. It asks for as much notice as possible and says service orders are worked Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., excluding holidays. It also asks that the meter be free of fences, trees, shrubs, buildings and animals, and says an adult must be home on the service day if access is difficult.

Natural gas: Columbia Gas of Virginia and Richmond Gas Works

Not every home has gas. Our guide to Richmond neighborhoods with natural gas versus all-electric homes covers how to tell which side an address falls on. If the house does have gas, there are two providers to know.

Columbia Gas of Virginia takes start, stop and move requests through online forms. Its page asks for at least one business day of notice before the start date and lists the information for a start request: the primary account holder’s name, SSN or TIN, phone number, date of birth and email, the start date and the address. The non-emergency support number on the page is 1-800-543-8911.

Inside the city, the City of Richmond Department of Public Utilities page says water, sewer and natural gas services come from the department and Richmond Gas Works, that water and sewer are available throughout the city, and that natural gas is available in most areas of the city as well as parts of Henrico County. The same page lists the department at (804) 646-4646 and says to leave the area and call 911 for a gas leak. If the home you are buying is on a Richmond Gas Works line, the gas account is a city account, not a Columbia Gas account.

Water, sewer and trash by locality

Water and sewer are the part of the setup that changes most from one county line to the next. Here is what each public source we read says, followed by the homes that are not on public water at all.

City of Richmond

The City of Richmond Department of Public Utilities page is the one that states who provides water and sewer in the city. It lists a New Services Team at (804) 646-8544 for establishing new utility services and the general department line at (804) 646-4646. That page covers new service connections rather than a move-in form for an existing house, so for a resale home, call the department line and ask how the account is placed in your name. The page does not discuss trash billing.

Henrico County

The Henrico County Department of Public Utilities page is the most complete move-in page of the localities we checked. It covers water, sewer and refuse collection together: call 804-501-4275, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., or apply online. Owners should have the name and phone number of their real estate agent or closing attorney ready, and tenants need the landlord’s name, address and phone number. A $14.00 customer setup charge appears on the first bill, and water and sewer are billed every two months.

Chesterfield County

Chesterfield County Utilities says water can usually be turned on within two working days after you call 804-748-1291 (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.). There is a $15 fee to open an account. The page spells out the paperwork for tenants: the original signed lease, valid identification and the full deposit, which it lists at $200 for residential tenants. The page does not address trash, so ask the seller who hauls trash at the address, and read the HOA documents if the community has an association.

Hanover County

Hanover County’s utility pages say to call Public Utilities customer service at 804-365-6024 to start, transfer or stop service. Bills go out bi-monthly and are based on usage in 1,000 gallon increments. The pages we read did not cover deposits or trash.

Powhatan County

Powhatan County operates its own water and wastewater system, but only in part of the county: water and sewer along the Route 60 corridor from the Chesterfield County line to Flat Rock, and sewer in the courthouse area and parts of Route 60. To start service, you submit a Utility Service Connection Application with the service application fee and deposits, in person or by mail. Utilities answers at 804-598-5764, and the county bills bimonthly.

Goochland County

Goochland’s Department of Public Utilities publishes a Connection Application for service to county-owned water and sewer lines. The form asks for meter size, owner and applicant information, the address and subdivision details, and says a plumbing permit number is required before the meter can be set. It is a connection form, so it fits a property newly joining the system rather than a routine resale.

Homes with a well, a septic tank or neither public service

Outside the public water and sewer service areas, there may be no water account to open. A home on a well and septic system has no utility water or sewer bill, and the inspection and testing steps move to the front of your list. Start with where Richmond-area homes are on public water and sewer versus well, then read the Virginia buyer requirements in our guide to buying on well and septic and the broader complete well and septic buyer’s guide. Powhatan is a common case, because its public service covers only certain corridors.

Scheduling start dates around your closing

You are setting up service to begin on the day you take possession, not the day you call. A workable order:

1. Right after the contract is ratified, find out the provider for each service from the seller’s bills.
2. In the week before closing, submit the electric and gas start requests with your closing date as the start date, and call the water and sewer office for the locality.
3. On the final walk-through, read each meter and note the number and date, so you can compare it with your first bill.

Our guide to your first 30 days after closing picks up from there.

Pre-move checklist

• Seller’s most recent electric, gas and water bills, or the provider names from them
• Government ID, and a Social Security number or the alternative ID the provider accepts
• Closing date, your agent’s contact and your closing attorney or title company contact
• Meter locations cleared of fences, shrubs and obstructions
• Meter readings and photos from the final walk-through

If you are still choosing where to buy, you can search current listings across the Richmond area, and our buyer process page explains how we work with buyers from offer to keys.

Frequently asked questions