Landlords charging for water in apartments? (Seattle, Bellevue: apartment complex, renter, HOA)

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by ctr88

Rents are higher then Seattle in the SF Bay, but I would say rents are lower then Seattle in San Diego. I could probably get a 1 bed apartment in San Diego equivalent to what I have here for about $1,050/mo and I'm paying $1,210 (plus $50/mo for water). AND in San Diego you don't have to pay for water and your energy costs are lower since you rarely use the heat or AC there. So I would say overall with renting, housing costs are lower in San Diego. Probably $250/mo out the door less when you factor in rent + utilities for a 1 bed apartment.

But depending on your income you pay 8-10% state income tax in CA, so you are still ahead in Seattle (lack of state income tax being part of the reason I moved up to WA State). But for people who make a low salary, they are not going to pay much or any state income tax, so in that case San Diego is a lot cheaper cost of living then Seattle.

Maybe it's changed. When I did my last comparison, San Diego was still more than Seattle. Another thing to keep in mind is that wages are comparatively lower in San Diego than almost all the west coast save maybe LA. Also, SDG&E is one of the highest utilities in the country. I think as far as gas and electric, second only to the one in Hawaii. It seems as though you struggle less in Seattle, overall getting more for your money.

[mrman78]

Ha, I actually had the opposite experience. I had to pay for water/sewer/garbage for all my apartments in Houston, but I don't have to here!

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by amaiunmei

From Tenants--Seattle Public Utilities:

Effective July 15, 2011 Seattle Public Utilities will no longer open new water/sewer/garbage accounts in tenant names. Water/sewer/garbage accounts will be maintained in the owner’s name only.

TL;DR: Owners get the bill, and owners may partition that bill out to pass on the cost to the tenant. The tenant doesn't deal with the utility as only the owner has access to that info from the utility.

This is part of their cost-cutting plan. By law the landlord is responsible for the bill if the tenant skips out anyway, so they just eliminated lot of collection effort.

[ctr88]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

SDG&E is one of the highest utilities in the country. I think as far as gas and electric, second only to the one in Hawaii.

SDG&E may be higher, but it you never use heat or AC is doesn't matter. For a 1 bedroom apartment my SDG&E bill was between $19-$25/mo. You rarely turn the heat on in SD and I never had or used AC in 7 years down there. Electric bill is higher in Seattle because you have to have the heat on a large part of the year and you have to pay water which you don't pay down there. So your utilities will be MUCH higher in Seattle. I agree wages may be slightly lower in SD, although it really depends what field you work in. But I disagree that rents + utilities is higher. I think Seattle is higher in those areas, especially rents in the close in nicer Seattle neighborhoods.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by ctr88

SDG&E may be higher, but it you never use heat or AC is doesn't matter. For a 1 bedroom apartment my SDG&E bill was between $19-$25/mo. You rarely turn the heat on in SD and I never had or used AC in 7 years down there. Electric bill is higher in Seattle because you have to have the heat on a large part of the year and you have to pay water which you don't pay down there. So your utilities will be MUCH higher in Seattle. I agree wages may be slightly lower in SD, although it really depends what field you work in. But I disagree that rents + utilities is higher. I think Seattle is higher in those areas, especially rents in the close in nicer Seattle neighborhoods.

Well it was a while ago when I compared rents. Whether or not you use AC in SD depends where you are. It frequently got over 90 degrees near Qualcomm Stadium where I lived. AC was needed.

[MamaRed]

Originally Posted by mkarch

Free water in CA? Do they bring you food as well?

Nothing is free in CA!. Water and trash bills stay in the name of the property owner, so rent is usually bumped up to cover both. I'm sure CA landlords like that people just assume they're really generous.

[mrman78]

Originally Posted by ctr88

SDG&E may be higher, but it you never use heat or AC is doesn't matter. For a 1 bedroom apartment my SDG&E bill was between $19-$25/mo. You rarely turn the heat on in SD and I never had or used AC in 7 years down there. Electric bill is higher in Seattle because you have to have the heat on a large part of the year and you have to pay water which you don't pay down there. So your utilities will be MUCH higher in Seattle. I agree wages may be slightly lower in SD, although it really depends what field you work in. But I disagree that rents + utilities is higher. I think Seattle is higher in those areas, especially rents in the close in nicer Seattle neighborhoods.

Well this is slightly misleading. Obviously coming from San Diego to Seattle your electric bills would be expected to be higher here due to the pretty consistent temperatures down there where, like you said, you don't need to turn the heat or AC on much. Now for me, coming from Houston, electric is dirt cheap here. My water/sewer/garbage is included in my rent too (which it wasn't in Houston). My highest bill has been just under $90 for two months and that's keeping my place in the low 70s. In Texas, the lowest it would go would be about $60 a month in the spring/autumn. Also, my rent is lower here than in Houston and I live 2 miles from downtown as opposed to 10 miles from downtown in Houston. My place is about 100 sq ft smaller, but it's also $145 cheaper in rent. Not only that, but it's an amazing location and so much more scenic.

My point is, there is no generalised rule that says one place is more expensive than another. For me, Houston was more expensive than Seattle. Almost all of my living costs went down moving here and I have a higher salary and higher quality of life. So it really just depends on your personal situation.

[Alicia2021]

It aggravates me when IDIOTS Say to Go read your tenants "Rights" WHAT RIGHTS!!!!!!!!
Especially here in Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, Issaquah, Kirkland, WA **** State.
The kind of Disrespect against tenants is DISGUSTING, even the maitenance staff is Disrespectful.
And the WORST part is that these Crooked Landlord are above the law. This is the SAme a Mexico,
Colombia, and Argentina, it's ALL FRAUD. Tenants here get treated like they are ANIMALS, or even
worse.

[joestar1]

Yes.

[Ruth4Truth]

I've seen quite a few rentals around Puget Sound, that say tenant pays for gas & electricity, but LL pays for water and trash pickup, or just for water. Those always seem like a good deal for people like me, who like to take a long soak in the tub a few times/week.

But yes, OP, Ira's right; if your unit is metered separately, you should have had to set up an account with the city water utility. If reading your lease doesn't answer your questions, you can call the LL and ask how the water billing works.