Is this lease rule legal or normal?

[old_cold]

Originally Posted by STT Resident

"PGE utility invoice for the heating/air conditioning and common area shall be billed to each tenant on a pro-rota basis based on the square footage of their unit."

Isn't that clear?

Whether Jesus is sweet or not......
That sounds clear to me....clear in that there is an 'and' in there.....H/AC AND the common area.
Reads that the entire bill will be divided up on a per foot basis.
Larger apts will pay more than smaller ones but if there are people that use excessive utilities, you do share part of the cost.
Best one to ask specifically,of course, is management

[fraydnerv]

Originally Posted by old_cold

Whether Jesus is sweet or not......
That sounds clear to me....clear in that there is an 'and' in there.....H/AC AND the common area.
Reads that the entire bill will be divided up on a per foot basis.
Larger apts will pay more than smaller ones but if there are people that use excessive utilities, you do share part of the cost.
Best one to ask specifically,of course, is management

I also interpreted this to mean that the a/c & heating for the entire house AND the common area electric will be divided. It sounded to me like only the personal electric, such as lights, electronic devices and appliances are billed directly to each unit. Weird if you ask me.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

I can't put this in words of one syllable, but I will be as simple as I can.

Just because you have a thermostat in your unit, does not mean that the actual unit that produces the heat or air-conditioning is on your personal electric bill. The thermostat does not produce heat. If the bill is prorated, then each of those other units is also paying their share of the bill. That means, if they are paying their own share, and you are paying your own share, that you are not paying for their share.

Other than that, I give up. If you can't understand it, ask your landlord to explain it to you. If you still can't understand it, then I suggest that you move to a different building where heat is set up in a different way.