Landlord paying all utilities

[Sean Harris]

I'm currently looking at a duplex to buy and as of right now the current landlord is paying ALL utilities. Apparently the current owner bought it as part of a package deal and just kept it the same as when they purchased it, but as you could imagine paying all the bills is cutting into the cash-flow immensely. My question is if you were to buy the property would you immediately change it to where they pay utilities or would you keep it the same. Apparently the tenements are long term.

[Ray Harrell]

There are pros and cons to utilities. PRO: You can raise the rent to cover the high average of utilities. PRO: you never have to worry about utilities being cut off in winter months potentially damaging your property. PRO: some tenants prefer paid utilities. PRO: you never have to deal with tenants transferring in and out of their name, or cutting off utilities instead of transferring back to you. CON: tenants will use utilities as if they are free and not conserve. CON: It sort of cuts into cash flow unless you raise rents to accommodate high usage.