YUP only the water company takes meters I don't think crooks find any value in them .. but I could be wrong in the tough areas of the US you would be surprised what crooks take.. its more common though for tenants to cut the main line to the meter put a hose on it and then connect to the line coming into the house. that works for a month or two before the water company figures out their water is being jacked. 

Additional negative factors to consider:You didn't account for property management (10% or $300/mo) or yard service ($80-100/mo), if for some unexpected reason you had to move out of state.Have you double-checked that that rent is typical for the area? 

First off, the question is slightly more complicated than what you've laid out, but still surprisingly simple.Your state law, local custom (i.e. what your judge says), and your lease all play into this. 

I was a bit surprised.

It's tricky and I'm surprised I'm not hearing more threads about this. 

I'm surprised she offered to let you keep $1,000.  

To say I was surprised about the year-over-year sales volume beat is an understatement.

If someone told me the building department was manned by callous cyborgs pretending to be human I would not be surprised. 

I do have experience with the spending budget expanding to match unexpected conditions.

Hey guys, I have a bit of a story here so bear with me: so last summer me and my brother were surprised by my grandmother who decided to buy us a house- all cash- as a gift.