A 62-property multifamily REIT
A multifamily REIT recovers $471,000 from vacancy and water billing
62 properties, 9,400 units, 1,850 meters, 11 utilities, 6 states
- overbilling identified across 58 claims
- $530,000overbilling identified across 58 claims
- refunds and credits received to date
- $471,000refunds and credits received to date
- meters mapped to units and common areas
- 1,850meters mapped to units and common areas
- of claim value accepted by utilities
- 94%of claim value accepted by utilities
The challenge
Each property managed its own utility accounts and AP coding. When residents moved out, service reverted to the owner, and the transfer to the next resident or the account closure often lagged by weeks.
Corporate finance saw totals per property but no meter-level view. Water and sewer billing, tied to meter size and irrigation, was especially hard to check against the rate rules.
What we did
Connect property and bill data
We read utility bills together with unit and lease data from the property management system.
Compare billing to occupancy
Billed periods were checked against move-in and move-out dates to find owner-paid charges that did not belong to the owner.
Audit common-area and water accounts
Clubhouse, hallway and irrigation meters were checked against their schedules, and sewer charges against non-returned water.
File and fix the account records
Claims were filed by property, and corrected account records and closure requests were sent to each utility.
Findings
| Error | What we found | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Closed and vacant site billing | Owner-paid charges for vacant units and for periods after a resident left. | $265,000 |
| Sewer charges on evaporated water | Sewer charges on irrigation and pool makeup water that never reached the sewer. | $138,000 |
| Crossed meters | Units billed for common-area or neighboring usage after renovations. | $74,000 |
| Estimated reads never trued up | Long runs of estimated reads that ended in catch-up bills outside the utility's rules. | $53,000 |
Find out what your utilities owe you.
Connect bills for up to 50 meters. Get the findings report in about three weeks. Pay nothing unless money comes back.
- from bill access to first findings report
- 21 daysfrom bill access to first findings report
- of filed claims accepted by the utility in full or in part
- 94%of filed claims accepted by the utility in full or in part