Landlord responsibility for high water charges

[Ryan Mulrooney]

This past winter, my tenant contacted me about an outrageously large water bill. I immediately suspected an issue with one or more old toilets with brass innards, and my plumber confirmed that two were quietly trickling water down the bowl. I fixed them immediately (ouch, it was big). I looked at the tenant's bill for the same quarter the previous year as a benchmark and immediately and voluntarily paid half the big water bill, and again paid about a third of the bill for the quarter during which the repair was made. Now my tenant -- who is in arrears with the water department -- has told me he expects me to pay towards bills that he says were too large dating back two years to when he moved in, saying that it was obvious that the issue persisted much further back. In the lease, the tenant is responsible for reporting repair issues, and I'm responsible for repair. In all cases, I've made prompt repairs for known issues, even ones that I felt strongly were created by the tenant's actions. When the tenant moved in, I took video of the toilets and they were not running. I say that he had a duty to point out any issues (like when the water bill arrived) and the time so they could be investigated and/or mitigated. I suspect this will end up in small-claims. What are my liabilities and responsibilities? You may ask, were the bills actually higher? Yes, slightly higher than the previous tenant. 

[Ned Carey]

If the bills are only slightly higher than the previous tenant it could simply be this tenant uses more water. In my area, water bill area liens against the property. Regardless of what the lease says, I am ultimately responsible. If that is not the case in your area then let them turn the water off. 

Ultimately it is a practical matter. How much is the water bill? How hard would it be to replace this tenant? What does your lease say and how strong is it?  How does this units water usage compare to nearby houses/units?