separate meter for water

I plan to gut renovate an entire multi-family property. Is it possible to get a separate water meter and boiler for each legal apartment in Brooklyn, New York, so the tenant will be responsible for water, cooking gas, and electric? Or is the landlord always responsible for the water bill and heat?

sphil305

in Renovation 9 months ago

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menachemseidenfeld | 8 months ago

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I recently bought a 3 family and it has separate boilers and water heaters for each unit. I also just put in mini split heat pumps in each unit so other than the cold water, everything is separate

billstarwars | 9 months ago

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In Brooklyn, you can totally set up separate water meters and boilers for each apartment. This way, tenants can cover their own water, cooking gas, and electric bills. As for heat, it’s a bit trickier; it depends on your setup and local regulations. Sometimes landlords are still on the hook for heat, but it’s worth checking with the city or a local property management pro to make sure you’re compliant with all the rules.

Shamrock | 9 months ago

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The problem with separate boilers is that instead of having 1 boiler breaking down you have 10. I have separate boilers myself, but I don’t know if it was a good decision. Plumbers are expensive to call, and replacing 1 small boiler requires the same permit as 1 big boiler.

The main advantage of separate boilers is that tenants control their own heat. I have tenants that turn on their heat in January, the tenants that don’t pay for heat want the heat on in September.

As regards water meters for residential tenants, I think that there will be a minimum charge on each water meter, and it might not make sense. You can install submeters and bill for the water that way. There are companies that read submeters for landlords. Also you will have to run and maintain separate water lines to each apartment.

Brownstone Home Inspection | 9 months ago

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So you can install sub meters and bill that way.

sphil305 | 9 months ago

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yeah it seems to be a bigger hassle separating it

Brownstone Home Inspection | 9 months ago

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In other jurisdictions, i know for a fact you can get seperate meters. In those jurisdictions, you pay a lot for them. What you plumb to them after the meter is your business.

I am not sure about nyc. I do home inspections and NEVER see multiple water meters.