Water and sewer in Cleveland

[Salvatore Spano]

Hi all,

I am a new investor in the US, still considering the location of my first rental purchase. I have been reading extensively and had come to the conclusion that NE Ohio, and especially Cleveland, would be the best option: low entry level, available stock, good ROI.

I am having second thoughts now. I have read that water and sewer bills are always paid by the landlord, and this is no joke, as these expenses can total over $1200 a year. The envisaged good cap rate therefore becomes rather ordinary...

I have read threads on the subject. Property managers Holton Wise Group state clearly that they will never ask tenants to pay these bills 
because of all the legal difficulties put in place by Ohio Landlord Tenant Law and the City of Cleveland, Division of Water.

There must be a way to transfer these costs on to the tenant, after all a lease contract is a contract between two parties and can include all sorts of agreements between two parties.   I  was wondering whether other property managers have a different view and manage to achieve this and how.

I would really like to solve this issue,which is not secondary, otherwise it will be Alabama for my investment (also considering lower taxes).

What is your experience? Thanks for any suggestion.