CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The

is all that stands between Arthur and Beverly Barton and closing the books on the sale of their North Royalton home.

That and six cents.

The elderly couple sold their North Royalton home in June and moved to Carey, N.C. They have been calling Cleveland water nearly every week since trying to get a final bill. Cleveland water serves about 65 suburbs, including North Royalton.

"I bet we called 20 times," said Arthur Barton, 75, who retired from General Motors' Parma plant after 32 years. "They always said, 'It's on the way, or we'll take care of it.' "

Nobody mentioned the 6 cents until earlier this month, he said.

The title on couple's home on Gabriella Drive has long since transferred, so getting the final water bill is important so the title company can close the books on the sale and issue the Bartons a check for the balance from the escrow account, a few hundred dollars.

But the frustration resulting from the experience overwhelms his 74-year-old wife, Beverly.

"She goes to tears sometimes," Arthur Barton said. "She can't get this done and there's nobody to turn to."

Alan Seifullah, a Cleveland public utilities spokesman, said Wednesday that the department's policy is to clear accounts with a balance less than $1. He said that this should never have been an issue for the Bartons, adding, "Somebody exercised poor judgment."

"I mean 6 cents ... it costs more than 6 cents to send the bill out," Seifullah said. "This shouldn't have happened."

Seifullah indicated that the department receives complaints over final bills for home sales, but he said that Cleveland water is addressing them by stepping up training. "We've got a lot of resources devoted to this," he said.

In the typical home sale, a couple hundred dollars is set aside from the proceeds of the sale to pay final utility bills -- water, sewer, gas and electric. Once they are paid, the title company issues a check for the balance to the seller.

Problems with Cleveland water getting its final bills out also often affects the final bills for customers of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District. Sewer bills are based on water consumption and Cleveland water handles the billing for the regional sewer district.

"It's an issue," said Jean Chapman, the sewer district's spokeswoman.

Chapman said some of these issues are related to Cleveland's billing system, which has been plagued with problems since a new system was implemented in 2009. But some of them are related to the "whole closing process."

"For example, sometimes when a house closes and they put money in escrow, there's not enough money in escrow to pay that final bill," Chapman said.

That's partly because the bad economy has put some people behind on paying their bills, so they may be carrying large balances. Additionally, Cleveland hasn't been routinely reading meters, and instead has relied on estimating water usage. This, too, has resulted in large, unexpected water and sewer bills for some customers.

That's a messy situation that can result in the buyer, seller and title company fighting. And problems with the final water bill can delay the closings of home sales. Sheila Kelly, a regional sewer district board member and vice president of Villa Realty, said local Realtors need to adjust how they handle listings in Cuyahoga County.

They need to order the final water bill right away, as soon as they put a home on the market, and make sure that contracts call for at least $500 to be set aside for final bills, Kelly said. The typical $200 set aside is not enough.

Carol Woodard, a Realtor who chairs the Cleveland Board of Realtors, said Cleveland Water's history "hasn't been real good." But she senses it's improving.

Woodard bases that belief on an experience she had in December when a home she had sold got caught up in a complicated issue over meter reading problems and how much was owed.

"They were courteous and responsive," she added. "We were able to close the sale."