Need help getting 4-plex to cash flow

[Kyle McCorkel]

Here's the situation: I bought a 4-plex in a B class area in June 2015 (about 7 months ago).  I'll be honest; didn't know about BP at the time, I had read a few books, but definitely didn't know how to analyze a deal the way I do now.

Bottom line is, it cash flows but not enough.  I do think there's a few things I can do to turn this mediocre deal into a good deal, however.  Based on market research, rents can be increased about 10-15% (no problem there; I have a plan in place with my PM to increase over the next 12 months).  Also, based on market research, many rentals in the area have tenant paid utilities.  For this property, currently water, sewer and trash are owner-paid.

So, here's my question: how can I convert water, sewer and trash over to tenant paid as efficiently (and fairly) as possible?

I've looked into RUBS/sub-metering companies, as my preference would be to have a 3rd party handle the billing for utilities (I heard about this on a BP podcast, and it sounded awesome).  The problem I've run into is the few RUBS/sub-metering companies I've found will not deal with a small operation like me.  Anybody have any companies they would recommend?

[Jeremy Pace]

@Kyle McCorkel

Ok, noted!

Assuming that your units all already have separated water, you can still install submeters yourself, have your handyman/PM/whoever read them once a month, prep statements, and add a processing fee (this is essentially what sub-metering operations do).  Meters are relatively inexpensive to purchase, and really easy to install.  Your tenants paying for water will likely require that they sign new leases, or at least an addendum.  Maybe you can use their rent increase re-signing as an opportunity to get that switched too.