Water bill dispute (one water meter for Duplex)

[Max Matsuk]

Good Afternoon all.

we have a situation where our landlord came to us 6 months after the signed lease to demand a monthly payment of the water bill. In the contract it states that we are responsible for all utilities, and we have no problem paying our share. BUT, the water is metered by one meter, (This was not specified in the lease) we want to pay for only what we use since we are almost never home. what is the best way to go about this?? 

Thanks in advance

[Kevin Sobilo]

@Max Matsuk, you may need to contact a local lawyer who specializes in real estate to answer this because this issue varies by state somewhat from what I understand.

Some states allow a landlord to sub-meter a single water line and use those meters to charge back tenants. I don't think all states allow that though.

Some states might allow other divisions of a combined water bill based on occupancy etc but again I don't think all states allow that and also that should be spelled out in detail in the lease. For example: "The water will be prorated and billed back to the tenants based on the number of occupants in each unit."