Can Recycling help PMs save money on the waste bill ?

Question

Hello there ,  somebody that Manages Commercial or a large Residential complex, is it possible to save money from what you pay Waste Management or similar by starting  a recycling program? Can you give me an idea on how much you pay to WM or similar, and how much is per unit per pick up day?

Daryl Arias · Answer

@Teri S. jajaja I hear you, but there is really a posibility of lowering the trash bill, it might not be worth it for one or two properties but some PM pay over 6-7k per month, I ve seen cases where simple changes can lower that to 2-3 thousand dollars. So you can get Brownie points and Dead Presidents

Bill S. · Answer

@Daryl Arias in some areas the costs of disposal is more than recycling and in others it makes no economic sense to recycle. I know in Florida landfill space is limited due to high ground water which makes disposal costs expensive. This is really a local issue and really depends on many local factors. I knew a guy that worked in Lee County public works years ago and he was happy to tell everyone the highest point in that county was the landfill. They have to build a mountain for the trash. Check with the local apartment owners association. They will likely know of programs if they exist. Sometimes vendors offer discounts to association members as well. I would say network locally. Call trash companies as well. Beware in that they have something to sell.

Daryl Arias · Answer

@Michael Boyer Thanks so much for the response,  I completely agree with your assessment,  but I was looking for basically, at how sometimes the Trash Haulers have some nice ways of overcharging for their service. Eventhough recycling for me is super important, i try not to see it from the "good for the environment side" and actually make it count in the bottom line.

Michael Boyer · Answer

I got a roll to the curb recycling bin (anything but glass goes in it).... I did it to be green, some tenants had asked, and it seems reasonable on costs (I had plenty of dumpster space, too)..

I think the bill is 30-40 bucks a month (but the waste company is a the master of an incremental annual raises).... Same company as trash here. They put us on a monthly and they give you a pick up schedule.....

A couple of issues you may find....

1) One problem believe it or not: pushing it to the street/curb on recycle day  (about 5-10 feet at my place)..  Seems simple... BUT....You need a system for that (or automate it if possible)...

Getting tenants to think about doing it every other Thursday by 8 AM or something.... I have tried to tell all of them, assign one of them, told them to pull it out when they see the other recycle bins pulled out, etc.... Really hit or miss... ok, mostly miss..

Well, let's just say if a tenant had this level of personal management skill, they may own a house already (I know it sounds bizarre, but if you could calendar the recycle days each month, wake up and make the effort, you also probably have the simple personal management skills to budget, start a saving plan for a down payment, make payments on time and improve your credit to buy a house,.....) So your tenant type may determine if this works for you... Or you can drive over just to pull it out every time (which could work if it is on your commute, but pretty laborious).

A second potential issue if you have urban animals--racoons now live in most urban areas across the US and Canada--or even dogs or bears (oh my), you also have to make sure tenants rinse out things like canned food and only put in like the tops of pizza boxes (not the bottom with all the debris and grease) and on whether your tenant population can or will do this,  see my personal management point above... These are seldom animal proof (some trash receptacles are but the recycle ones not so much).. So more potential labor/headache if it gets turned over or strewn about..

Third issue. Your recycle bin will be next to a dumpster (like mine) and you will open the dumpster and see it full of recycle items that could have been put in the recycle bin.... (see note above about personal management)... So you wonder... I may discontinue if I don't see it pulled out...

Then, of course, you will have great tenants who can handle this well but they eventually move on so you always have to have people there who are interested and able to handle recycling. Finally, you have to make it a no brainer and automated.... or it may not work.

Best of luck.

Bill S. · Answer

@Daryl Arias here the trash companies and recycle companies are one and the same. It might be a local thing.

Daryl Arias · Answer

@Bill S. Thanks Bill, will take your advice except calling thrash companies as they will probably not share this info with me, specially if I tell them that I want to lower the bill I pay them.

Teri Feeney Styers · Answer

ahh... but it is the right thing to do... if you can help residents find a way then you'll earn "good guy" brownie points.

Tony SanFilippo · Answer

@Daryl Arias, Sorry didn't dig into any calculations per unit, just knew is was Not going to save any money.  But Different states do different things, so I would give WM a call and see what they say.  You never know until you call.

Daryl Arias · Answer

Like how much is with recycling and without?  Do you have a calculation per unit?

Thomas S. · Answer

Recycling is labour intensive and costs more than throwing it in the garbage.

Can Recycling help PMs save money on the waste bill ?

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