Ways to save on Water bill in a quadruplex

[Moncy Samuel]

We have a quadruplex under contract and looking to close this property in two weeks. Currently 4 units rents for $750 and one for $800 as they have washer/dryer. Owner pays the water bill as there is only one water meter for the building. During inspection time, we met the seller and she was owners about the water bill which is potentially a cash flow killer. It varies between 400-700/month and looking for advises from experts here to solve this and keep this manageable and under budget. The property is in Dekalb county, Georgia. Second question is, because this is a cash deal, should we do an appraisal before closing ?. Looking for your valuable suggestions.

[Max T.]

You can't just submeter/RUBS and bill back to tenants if that is not in their lease. You can do that and then wait to bill back to tenants until their leases come up for renewal, but then you risk them not agreeing and moving out and now you have a vacancy.

I would replace any old 1.6 gallon per flush toilets with newer 1.2s. You could retrofit the old toilets instead of replacing them with a kit that costs about $30/toilet.

You may also want to check all of the toilets for internal leaking/running and replace the flappers of any toilets that are doing that. Also check all of the sink and shower/tub faucets for drip leaks. Tenants won't inform you of these things unless they are an inconvenience (they aren't if the tenants aren't paying the bill).

Low flow shower heads and faucets are also a good idea and will pay for themselves quickly.

I would also close the valves leading to any exterior hose bibs and change out your landscaping to plants that don't need extra water. You can set up rain barrels to catch water from your downspouts to help with gardening.