What is the trend for water and sewer rates?
Water rates and sewer rates (sewer rates are based on water consumption) are increasing faster than the rate of inflation. The increase in the price of water between 2013 and 2014 in 30 major US cities was 6 percent and the average since 2010 is a 33 percent increase.
Why submeter water?
There are two reasons to submeter water:
1. Financial – By submetering water the property owner can eliminate two large variable utility expenses; water and sewer. When the residents pay for their own water/sewer usage then the property owner has better control of the property’s water and sewer utility expense. This allows the property owner to provide more competitive rents while at the same time increasing the property’s net operating income. By increasing net operating income a water submetering system can increase the property value.
2. Environmental – Billing residents for their actual water usage puts the resident in a position to control their own water utility expense. Water consumption drops by 20-40% in multi-family properties when residents pay their own water utility expenses. Reducing water consumption is good for the environment especially in areas that may require mandatory water restrictions due to drought conditions.
Why design for water submetering at the time of construction when it is not a code requirement?
Adding water submeters to the property during building design is simple. Small changes such as installing individual water feed lines (either just a cold supply line or both hot and cold lines) make it easy to add water submeters in the future.
Planning for water submeters in the building design phase provides significant savings when it comes time to install the water submeters.
Is it legal to install water submeters?
At this time, water submetering is legal in all fifty states, although in a few municipalities there may be specific legal requirements. If you have questions feel fee to contact H2O Degree’s metering experts at (215) 788-8485 or email info@H2ODegree.com.
