However, without individual meters, accurately measuring usage for each unit could be challenging.

While the following rankings include a great deal of subjectivity, we use objective measures in our quest to create a hot list of where to search for your next vacation rental.

Sounds like an internal policy decision that you will never win, regardless of any reasonably prudent measures you take.

I recommend to all my property management clients to institute RUBS/Sense etc, there's really great tools nowadays to put systems in place to measure these items, be it water or electric. 

I feel maintaining your properties correctly and being decent to your tenants is the best preventative measure we as landlords can take next to LLCs, insurance, and umbrella policies.

Thank you for the input, I will measure the distance from the window sill to the third floor carpet, it's pretty low, let me see if I can attach pictures.

There is no appreciation beyond that like you have in real estate, but it is the easy answer to your question at the moment… and inversely related to real estate, so as interest rates go down on savings, real estate affordability will go up by the same measure (more or less). 

Many investors use a general rule of thumb for midterm rentals that they should earn about 50% more in rents than an equivalent long-term rental (whereas short-term rentals should earn double or 100% more than if the property was utilized as a long-term rental).However, for DSCR lenders, change can be slow and challenging, and many lenders prefer and require more precise qualification measures than rules of thumb.

It's worth the $1k or so to take the correct measures.

I asked for measurements to arrange the replacement, but they took two weeks to respond.