Who pays the utility bills at my property?

If the property is occupied, tenants are responsible for paying utility bills. When we move a new tenant in, we’ll guide them through the process of getting the relevant utilities in their name. For single family homes, the tenants are typically responsible for all utilities. For multi-unit properties, tenants are typically responsible for any utility that is separately metered, while owners are responsible for any jointly metered utilities. (The most common example of a jointly metered utility is water.)

Utilities

What are the three utility billing names and what do they mean?

  • RPM-OC: This means that the Utility Bill is in the Owner's Name and the Owner pays for the cost of the utility.

  • RPM-OTC: This means that the Utility Bill is in the Owner's Name, but the actual cost is charged to the Tenant each billing period.

  • RPM-TC: This means that the Utility Bill is to be in the Tenant's Name and will be responsible for the payment each billing period.

What are the typical utility payment structures?

  1. TENANT PAYS ALL - Tenant shall be responsible for having all utilities in their name and paying them in full as due. Tenant shall be charged a $25 Utility Admin Fee for each utility invoice received that they do not put into their name upon move in. (COMMON)

  2. MIXED - Landlord pays for some, but Tenant pays for remaining items e.g. Water/Sewer/Garbage/PGE/Security/etc. (COMMON)

  3. LANDLORD PAYS ALL - Landlord pays for all utilities. (RARE)