Should landlord or tenant pay for water in Grand Rapids?

[Ben D.]

Hello BiggerPockets - 

I could use some advice.  I own several rental properties in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and I am trying to decide whether I should pay for water and sewer service or whether the cost should be passed on to my tenants.  

My property manager argues that I should pay for water because:

    -  If water bills are unpaid, the City of Grand Rapids can put a lien on your home even if the bill is in your tenant's name

    -  The cost of water paid by the landlord is offset by higher base rents

My thought process is that the cost should be passed to the tenants because:

    -  With the tenant paying the bill, they will be most usage conscious and overall cost will decrease

    -  I am skeptical that having the landlord pay for water results in a dollar for dollar increase in base rents

    -  I have always had the philosophy that as many utilities should be passed to the tenant as possible

My plan is to push my property manager to change leases moving forward so that tenants pay for water, but I wanted to get the BiggerPockets community's thoughts in case I am missing something here?  Appreciate any advice.  

[Tim VandenToorn]

We pay water for the tenant and bill them later for it.  This ensures the water is paid and not attached as a lien at move out.