Strata Unit Water Usage.

newhomebuilder · Sep 28, 2007 9:05 am

Morning,

We have a block of units (3) and there is only one water meter for the whole property, which means that we need to pay for their water usage (which doesn't cost much) but the waste water access fee is huge, we spend $500 every three months which adds up very quickly.

Is there anyway of being able to pass on the bill to the tenants. We revive 3 bills for each unit, however the total cost is subdivided by 3, so each bill is the same amount. So if the person from unit 1 goes away for 5 months, they havnt used any water, but when they get back they still need to pay for the other 2 units water usage, as the total bill is split between 3.

Is it even to get a individual meter for each unit, not sure how practical this would be, not to mention the cost.

Any help would be great

Gothetigers · Sep 28, 2007 9:52 am

You can have them individually metered but not sure of the cost.

I own a real estate estate agency in Brisbane. We allow tenants use of 75kls of water per quarter and charge anything over that amount.

I notice that you are in Victoria so I would ring whoever governs your residential tenancy act for the state. Each state is different in what you can and cannot charge a tenant. They may be able to give you some direction.

If you are able to charge just check whether you need to have a clause written into the lease.

Cheers

Trevor

Adrian B · Sep 28, 2007 10:25 am

Provided there is easy access to the pipes, it should not be too horrendously expensive to get the meters put in, which I would recommend. Remember you can claim it all back on your tax (of course you need the cash to pay for it now.) You may need to purchase the meters, but a call to your local wqater company will tell you.

The issue will be access the pipes between where they enter the house, and the junction point where the water pipes 'break off' to each house.

I would ring someone like dial before you dig, or your local water company. They may have plans for the site.

Then get some quotes from plumbers.

newhomebuilder · Sep 28, 2007 11:01 am

I just called Consumer Affairs and they said there is no way we could pass on any water / wastewater usage to the tenant, unless we increased rents.

Called the water authority, and said that if we get individual meters, then the tenant pays for water usage, but the landlord still needs to pay for the access fees. Which will mean a saving of about $11 dollars, as the actual water usage cost is minimal, but every other cost is enormous, which we still need to pay!