Landlords and property managers are responsible for set up and management of utilities prior to tenant move in.
Any utility not set up by Landlord/Property Manager can be purchased or set up by the tenants in the home. The landlord and/or the property manager does not provide reimbursement or payment for any utility set up by a tenant outside of the Service Contract and all landlord/property manager provided utilities are required to remain set up.
What does it say in the lease?
A full list of utilities that are provided by the Landlord can be found in the Service Obligation table under "Utility Bills/Service Contracts".
The following is pulled directly from the lease:
Section 7. Utility Bills/Service Contracts: Landlord and Occupant agree that utility bills and service contracts ("Service Obligations") for the Premises shall be paid by the party indicated below as to each Service Obligation with the following limits:
Occupants will be responsible for a max of $100 per month for utilities (included in their monthly rent payment). This breaks down to
(a) Electricity: $80/bedroom per month
(b) Water/Sewer/Trash $30/bed per month
(c) Gas: $20/bedroom per month or
(d) Total: $100/bedroom per month, whichever is lower
If these limits are exceeded, then the overage will be divided between the current occupants and charged accordingly.
What Happens if Utility Limits are Exceeded?
Tenants are accountable and responsible to keep utility usage within reason. Housemates will be accountable to cover the costs above and beyond $100 a month in utility costs, unless:
- the tenant notified the landlord/property manager, as soon as possible, of a fault or problem in utilities that then leads to excessive charges (valid support tickets on Alcove Platform required)
- the current tenants didn’t cause the utility to fault (landlord/property manager may appeal to utility provider to request reimbursement)
- A singular party / cause acknowledges their responsibility for the utility overage and agree to cover the entirety of the overage.
Many utility providers will reimburse customers for any public / community based causes for utility overage. Reasonable costs means costs that most people would think are fair. Tenants and landlords should follow-up directly with the utility provider to clarify what the utility provider will cover and what steps are required to resolve the matter.
Process when Utility Limits are Exceeded:
- Tenants will be notified via email of total utility overage and individual financial responsibility. This email will include the total amount due per tenant, as well as utility bills.
- Tenants have three (3) business days to reply directly to Alcove Support and dispute the additional charges
- If disputed, Alcove will hold off on completing the charges until tenant dispute case is reviewed and responded to
- Payment will be run; If payment fails, tenant will be notified and given 5 days before Alcove re-runs the payment.
- Invoice details and receipts will be added to tenant's MyAlcove Portal