North Carolina: can a landlord bill tenants for water, sewer and electric?
Yes, but under tight rules. North Carolina's G.S. 62-110(g) lets a landlord charge tenants for water and sewer through procedures set by the state Utilities Commission, generally based on each tenant's metered use and at no more than the supplier's unit rate. Subsection (h) covers electric service for individually metered units. A plain ratio split is mostly off the table.
What is the basic water and sewer rule?
Subsection (g) lets the North Carolina Utilities Commission adopt procedures under which a lessor of residential premises may charge occupants for water or sewer service. The statute then sets the baseline. All charges are to be based on the user's metered consumption of water, and the rate the landlord charges may not exceed the unit consumption rate charged by the supplier.
That wording matters for a small building with one master meter. If your tenants do not each have a measured use, you are not on the default path. The statute carves out three exceptions, covered next.
What are the exceptions?
- Older contiguous units (built before 1989): if measuring each tenant's total water use is impractical or not economical, the lessor may allocate cost using equipment that measures each unit's hot water, billed as that unit's share of all submetered hot water use. The statute says a lessor shall not use a ratio utility billing system or any allocation that does not rely on individually submetered hot water.
- A Commission-approved flat rate: where the Commission approves a flat rate for contiguous dwelling units, the lessor may pass through the same flat rate plus an administrative fee.
- One unit, several lessees: the lessor may divide the unit's water and sewer bill equally among the lessees in that unit, prorated when a lessee was not there for the same number of days, and may not add the cost of any other unit or common area.
In the hot-water exception, the statute adds guardrails. The lessor may not bill common-area water or water lost to leaks in the lessor's mains, and may not bill for excess use from a plumbing malfunction that the tenant did not know about or that was reported to the lessor.
What must a landlord do before billing?
The statute directs the Commission to develop an application the lessor must submit for authority to charge for water or sewer service. It lists what the form must include: a description of the applicant and the property, the billing method and statements, the supplier's rate schedule, the schedule the lessor proposes, the administrative fee proposed, contact details and the supplying system. The Commission must approve or disapprove within 30 days of a completed filing, or the application is deemed approved if no order disapproving it issues in that time.
To change the rate or the administrative fee later, the provider files a notice of a revised schedule. The statute presumes a valid notice and allows it to take effect on 14 days' notice to the Commission unless suspended or disapproved. The lessor does not have to file annual reports or post a bond under the sections the statute names.
What must the tenant's bill show, and what records are kept?
For the hot-water method, each bill shows the amount of water and sewer allocated, the method used, the billing period dates, a past-due date not less than 25 days after the bill is mailed, and a local or toll-free number and an address for questions. The lessor keeps records for at least 12 months showing how each tenant's allocated cost was calculated, and a tenant who gives advance written notice may inspect them during reasonable business hours. Measuring equipment must meet American Water Works Association guidelines.
What about electric service?
Subsection (h) is narrower. It lets the Commission adopt procedures for a lessor that has individually metered units for electric service in the lessor's name to charge for the actual costs of providing electric service to each lessee. The lessor divides the actual electric bill for the unit equally among the lessees in that unit, prorates for uneven stays, and may not charge electricity from any other unit or a common area. The lessor stays the utility's customer and is solely responsible for paying the bills promptly.
Records for electric billing are kept for at least 36 months, and a tenant may inspect them and get copies for a reasonable fee. Each bill must name the electric supplier, give usage dates, set a past-due date not less than 25 days after mailing, and state the tenant's right to take a complaint to the Commission if a dispute cannot be resolved.
How DoorKeeping fits in North Carolina
DoorKeeping does not file the Commission application, read meters or send tenant utility bills. It keeps the approval letter, each utility bill and your calculation in the unit's documents, so a 12 or 36 month records request is a folder, not a hunt. The AI reads each bill and codes it to the property's books, and tenant payments are matched in your bank feed. This is general information, not legal advice. Statutes change, so read the current text and ask a local attorney before you bill a tenant.
Sources
Questions
- Can a North Carolina landlord use RUBS?
- Generally no. Water and sewer charges are tied to metered consumption, and the hot-water exception says a landlord shall not use a ratio utility billing system or an allocation that does not rely on submetered hot water.
- Does a North Carolina landlord need approval to bill for water?
- The statute directs the Utilities Commission to develop an application a lessor must submit for authority to charge for water or sewer service. Confirm the current procedure with the Commission.
- Can a North Carolina landlord charge an administrative fee?
- A reasonable fee, up to the maximum the Commission authorizes. The electric subsection refers to the administrative fee authorized in Commission Rule 18-6 for water service.