Title companies often need to resolve outstanding water liens or judgments before a property can be sold or refinanced. These pre-settlement requests are sometimes referred to as water payoff requests. Individuals may also wish to settle their outstanding water liens or judgments with the City.
These types of requests are handled by the Water Department with assistance from the Law Department, and include:
- Outstanding water balances and liens
- Agency repair bill balances and liens
- HELP loan balances
- Water code enforcement judgments
Title companies and individuals can look up outstanding water liens on the water lien search website.
How to make a water settlement (payoff) request
Requests must be made by completing a water payoff request form. The form should be completed as a fillable PDF, not by hand.
Completed forms should be sent via email to wateramountdue@phila.gov at least 30 days before a property settlement. Please include the property address in the email subject line.
A water settlement request does not replace a lien search by a title company.
Separate requests must be sent for each property address and account number.