Below, you’ll find contact information and helpful tips for setting up utilities at your new Athens rental unit! It’s pretty easy; the utility companies and the city are used to people moving in and out of rental properties with some frequency. Another advantage of renting housing in Athens is that all the utilities are already set up from the last tenants. The vast majority of the time, you’ve just got to give these places a call and transfer existing service into your name.
Electric
AEP: American Electric Power
(800) 277-2177
Pro Tip: Calling ahead isn’t a bad idea, but you don’t really need to call until the day of move-in, as all they do is switch the bill from the last tenant’s name to yours.
Gas
Columbia Gas
(800) 344-4077
Pro Tip: Give yourself about a week for this one, just in case. Or schedule it even farther ahead of time than that. Columbia is pretty good about switching service right on schedule.
Water/Sewer/Trash
City of Athens
(740) 592-3347
Pro Tip: You’ve got to go do this one in person. Sorry, guys.
Cable/Internet
Spectrum
(844) 757-2833
Pro Tip: If you can get in touch with the previous tenant and work something out, Spectrum will let you keep the previous tenant’s equipment. That way they don’t have to deal with returning it and you don’t have to deal with going to get new stuff.
Telephone
Verizon
(800) 483-4000
Any other questions about setting up utilities or which utilities you’ll be responsible for in your new off-campus rental home? Feel free to reach out, consult our Sample Lease, and always take a second look at the listing for your rental unit, too – we try to list which utilities the tenant is responsible for in each property, as they do differ.