The water and sewer bills for multi-family developments are one of the largest expenses for the community. In the past, the cost for water and sewer was considerably less than what it is today. <Read more> With drinkable water becoming a scarce commodity throughout the united states the cost of water has been increasing very rapidly. This is partly due to the increased regulations by the government and partly due to the rapid population growth. Almost weekly there are articles about shortages of water. Many people have experienced these shortages in the form of water restrictions. It is inevitable that conservation efforts are going to be enforced in the future. That is why water sub-metering has become one of the most popular topics in the multi-family industry today.

Water sub-metering has only been around for a little over 5 years because it was not much of a concern. But over the past couple of years, with the cost of water increasing across the country by as much as 25% in a year, sub-metering has become one of the biggest concerns of multi-family communities.

Not all properties are being sub-metered today and not all properties are able to be sub-metered. But between 90% and 95% of all new constructions of apartment communities are being sub-metered and over the next few years, the majority or apartment communities that can be sub-metered will be installing a system. In the future many states will start requiring multi-family communities to sub-meter or possibly offer incentive programs to do so.