Sewer bill high?

Question

Any Garfield Heights Ohio investors feel that 97 dollars for sewer seems high? My

Property has three tenants one adult two children. I am worried maybe there is a plumbing issue they haven’t reported? Any thoughts? It’s a single family

Home 3 bed 1 bath

Nathan Gesner · Answer

In my experience, most sewers don't have meters. The utility provider measures the amount of water used, then they assume the same amount went into the sewer. If you have high sewer use, then you should also have high water use.

I would talk to the utility provider and ask them to explain the bill to you.

Cathy B. · Answer

Lauren,

Having gone through a water leak at my own home . . . I can say, it started as a small jump in the bill, but kept going up and the water company altered us to the issue.  By that time, there was water puddling in the yard and we got estimates in the $4-5K range for a whole new water line.  It would have been nice to catch it early and have the time to get more estimates and the right person for the job.

For your situation, maybe reach out to the tenants and ask if they would know of any reason why their water usage would have gone up . . .maybe its something they are doing.  If not, either you or they could take a walk of the property to see if there is water puddling outside.  Also, ask if they have heard any ghost flushing from the toilet, if they can hear any water running when everything seems to be turned off, or if any fixtures are dripping.

Visual inspection in and around all plumbing fixtures and lines might be warranted.  Look for dripping and/or mold in nearby drywall.

There are a couple of things, depending on your meter, you can see too . . . there is a small spinning dial that, if the leak is great enough, will be rotating if there is a leak and no fixtures are being used. Here is an example:

Lastly, you would need to work with your tenants, but  checking the meter when people leave for the day, then when they've returned . . . see if the water usage has one up with no one home.

Sorry, this is probably way more than you asked about . . . I think I'm forever traumatized by that water leak. $$$

Good luck!

-Cathy

Lauren Koon · Answer

I am not paying the bill- the tenant does but it usually is only 50/60 dollars a month in the past months so this just seemed a little high for me. The water/ sewer is in my name and is billed back to my tenant I only have one rental property and I was just hoping to get the feedback that this could be normal and something much higher could be indication of a issue at the home. Thanks for the response.

Nick Virovec · Answer

Hey Lauren,

Assuming you have the lease set up to manage the utilities, set up an online portal account for NEORSD. Do the same for Cleveland Water too. As it was mentioned, the sewer bill will be based upon the water consumption, so go to the water online portal and Cleveland water has a tool to check daily usage, easy to see bar graph. You can see if there is or was a noticeable spike in usage. But for what you mentioned, that doesn't seem to be too crazy. Assuming the water bill is around 70 dollars for the same billing period.

Bob Stevens · Answer

I have done about 80 properties in GH, no that is not high, maybe just a little, Why are you paying the water bill for a SF?  The avg water/ sewer bill is about 1500- 1900 for a year.

Andrew Weiner · Answer

Like it was said above, make sure to have an online account with Cleveland Water setup, they will e-mail if there is a big spike in usage.  You can also see the hourly or daily water consumption.  There can be indicators that if there is random high spikes it could be due to a toilet flapper getting stuck, if its slow and steady then probably a dripping fixture or slow leak in a toilet.  Overall I would rate that at the high end of single family use but I wouldn't be overly concerned yet.  They might have had a guest come in and there was someone else taking showers, and using a lot of water during that month.  We generally tell tenants to expect $40-50/person/month for combined water and sewer, many times it is good for setting a budget expectation on their part.

Bob Stevens · Answer

1st question, why are you paying the water bill for a SF ? 2ND I assume you mean per month ? If so no that is not high. The avg water/ sewer bill is 1500- 1800 a year. Have your PM co go and check for any running water. Running toilet can be 1500 a month, yes. Lastly, log onto your water acct, it will track hourly usage, see if there is a spike, but again, 100 bux a month is not high, well maybe a little.

Sewer bill high?

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