Real Estate Investor · Louisville, KY · Member since 2008 · 159 posts · 13 votes
Not asking for legal advice, but I am asking for a little guidance...I'm paying the utilities in a house. The tenants use the heat like CRAZY in this place....
Can I legally put a lockbox around the thermostat and set it at a fixed temp? Has anybody else done this and experienced any goods/bads with it?
Not sure about the lockbox but I would certainly put a cap on the amount you will pay for utilities. If it exceeds that amount, the tenant covers the difference.
Of course, you need to know your local laws. In many areas, there is a minimum temperature required in a rental. In general, yes, you could put a lockbox around the thermostat and set it at a fixed temp. Unfortunately, that won't do ANYTHING to fix your problem. Tenants will just put ice packs on the lockbox, which will allow the heat to run 24/7.
The real answer here is that you made a HUGE mistake in paying for the utilities. As you've found out, that's a recipe for disaster.
I agree with Mike...it is a recipe for disaster, but I'm really curious to know why are you paying for utilities? Is this a duplex without seperate meters?
Yes, it's a duplex without 2 meters. Bought the prop last month, the tenant's lease is up in March and I knew I would be responsible for the utilities. However, the bills I reviewed were less than 1/2 of the most recent one. His rent level was good enough to put up with the utility bills for a couple of months, but not at this high level......
I think your going to have to suck it up for the next couple of months and then in March at renewal make sure that you have a cap that you will cover. crazy for you to have to pay....
At this point you will have to cover the utilities as they come but the good news is that March is almost around the corner. Start working on a better way to handle the utility issue and make sure you give your tenants suficient notice of the change you are putting in place.
Good luck !