Utilities: Actual versus Estimated

Here is some advice for every new homeowner, which is probably far more obvious to most than it was to us.

When we were close to closing, I brought up utilities to our lawyer, because I was concerned over responsibility. "You only pay for what is incurred after closing," was the response, which made perfect sense to me. I didn't question it much more.

It is not the fault of my lawyer, but I should have questioned it more.

And after my experience, my advice is very simple:

Take pictures of your meters at closing.

Every one.

I can write all of this happily now, after "fighting" for the past couple of months with utility companies since closing, but I feel most of what I went through can be easily avoided with a few simple steps.

Like most, I called all of the utility companies to set up our accounts after we closed. In some cases, it was a little more complicated since the house that we bought was a two-family - meaning two utility accounts in some cases.

What I didn't account for was that the previous owner hadn't allowed meter readings from any utility company for three years.

Because of this, all meter readings had been estimated at very incorrect levels...

I'm not sure how it is in other parts of the country, or other parts of the world, but in NYC, meters are usually fairly accessible in large apartment buildings, because the "super" will allow access. However, in other smaller residential units (small apartments or townhomes/brownstones), utility meters are often inside, even in basements, and not as easily accesible to public inspection. When access is not granted, the utility company bills based on estimates.

Thankfully, right after closing, I took pictures of our meters. I am so glad that I did. Our utilities are handled by several sources: Con Ed, National Grid, DEP. 

Certain utilities (like water) were taken care of at closing, but others were actually left fairly ambiguous. To make it a happier story, to date, we have not paid for anything we did not owe, but we easily could have, so I would caution others to be aware. 

Fortunately, I knew to be aware of the "estimated" versus "actual" reading bills. But I can easily see how someone could not pay attention for months and get themselves into trouble.

Meter readings - you should learn how to read them and take pictures. Then contact the companies.

For other utility companies, they insist on coming in person. 

While most New Yorkers can guess the company, I won't name them, but they say they will come between 7:00am and 6:30pm and give you a 30 minute "warning call" to let you know that they are own their way.... 

Many don't realize it can take more than 30 minutes to get from one part of Manhattan to another, never mind from one borough to another... Never mind we are working... 

That is a vent for another time....

While not time-sensitive, another issue for us is that we have two sets of meters in some cases because the house was set up as a two-family. We will definitely be posting on the process to convert the meters to one set as our process continues...