Houston, TX · Member since 2017 · 49 posts · 15 votes
I own a triplex. I live in the main house up front which has its own water and electric meter.
I have two small homes in the back that share a water and electric meter. How do I handle utilities for these homes since they share a meter?? Should I ask the two tenants to split the bills down the middle?? Who's name would the utilities be under? Do I put it in my name and have tenants pay me for the utilities? I'm so confused.
Flipper/Rehabber · Golden, CO · Member since 2013 · 590 posts · 319 votes
9y
I'm dealing with the same situation now. Decided to add it into the rent and have one flat rate. Too much hassle to split the bill and play bill collector every month in my opinion. Curious on others techniques as well.
San Francisco, CA · Member since 2017 · 4 posts · 0 votes
5y
Utility companies have averages per household usually on bills, might have to call. Just incorporate it into the rent until the leases expire and you have historical use data. You may come out ahead or lose a bit of money. It's the cost of doing business. You should have probably looked into the metering situation before purchasing...TBH
Rental Property Investor · Virginia Beach · Member since 2012 · 70 posts · 34 votes
5y
TrueSubmeter has affordable main line and point of use meters for water & sewer. I use them for my personal home (triplex) and just ordered some for my 12 unit apartment building. Cost ~$6/month per unit for submetering monitoring. It also generates a bill that the tenants can view and pay.
Rental Property Investor · PA · Member since 2017 · 69 posts · 60 votes
5y
@Kyle Doney Yes for the water not the Electric. Electric is tricky. I would call Electric Company and Electrician for a price. Water on average depending upon the time of year across properties on average about 200 gallons per unit per month. This includes washing machine water. Stay at home COVID much higher, holidays higher, summer lower travel and vacations. You can look at your own bill for fees, taxes, etc.
Rental Property Investor · PA · Member since 2017 · 69 posts · 60 votes
5y
@Lee V. You can include in Rent up to a certain amount insert into lease if usage is beyond $x amount tenant is liable until you have a basis. Once you have a basis you can increase rents or keep the same.
Investor · Batavia, IL · Member since 2014 · 99 posts · 81 votes
5y
To keep things ultra simple I split utilities based on Sq footage of each unit. I send tenants a spreadsheet for their portion of utilities to include w rent. Simple spreadsheet I plug in utilities and it breaks out for each tenant. I have never had anyone issues or pushback from tenants.they actually prefer not having to pay for their own gas, electric, garbage etc.
Real Estate Agent · Scranton PA · Member since 2019 · 93 posts · 98 votes
4y
I agree with most of the replies to flat rate it and add in with the rents. You'll drive yourself crazy trying to prorate, or split it fairly. What if one of them refuses to pay because last month, the other people filled a pool? Just remember, you can't add more in for more people on the lease. Could be a fair housing case. Flat rate for everyone and you're covered.
Real Estate Broker · Chicago · Member since 2021 · 108 posts · 23 votes
4y
As a landlord, you want to make sure that tenants are paying their share of the bill each month, but also that they aren't being overcharged by making them pay for something they shouldn't have to pay for. Here is my idea on to separate utilities between tenants so everyone pays what is fair. The first step in this process is sitting down with your tenants and discussing the utilities you will provide. This gives them a chance to voice any concerns or questions that they have about what bills are being paid by whom. You should also take into consideration whether or not certain items are included as part of the rent payment, such as cable television. It's important that everyone who lives there knows exactly what their responsibilities are when it comes to paying the utility bill each month. If all tenants pay for electricity, but one person has another form of heating (such as an electric fireplace), then both can't use it at the same time without overloading the system.
I cannot afford to separate the meters.. I just don't have the funds to do so.. what are some other recommendations ?
What kind of quote did you get from the electrician and utility companies for adding meters for each?
I'd either factor it into the rent (think all-inclusive student housing) or separating the meters and possibly increasing the rents to pay for it (if the market can handle the increase).