Deciding between me paying for water or tenant paying

[Larry Wilson]

I recently purchased a ten unit in Indy. I’m in the first stages of renovations and trying to decide if I should add a water meter bank, where tenants pay their on water or use one meter and charge more for rent?

What are some of your experiences with self pay vs land landlord pay.

The equipment to run 10 individual meters is roughly 10k.

[Taylor L.]

If you execute the submeter successfully, how does that impact your NOI? Then how does that impact your valuation in your market? If successful, you'll probably make up the $10k a few times over.

Next step, are similar properties in your market submetered? Some markets do not support billing back utilities.

A deal I was involved with had a RUBS system implemented. It took a while to roll out, but it ultimately worked out. We weren't in Indy, though. You might want to look into your state laws and see if RUBS makes more sense than submetering. I don't know about the 10 unit range as far as numbers go, but it could be less hassle than breaking into your piping.