Utility costs represent an estimated 35% of the monthly operating costs for a community. The demand and costs for electricity, water and gas are rising to astronomical proportions. Our utility management solutions provide a simple and effective means of controlling these costs by making residents accountable for their utility consumption. More and more communities are realizing the benefits of implementing our program to meet today’s high energy and water demands.

>> Community Benefits
>> Metered Allocation
>> RUBS Allocation
>> Flat Rate Allocation
>> Conservation Assistance

Community Benefits

Increase the value of your community. Decreased utility bills resulting from resident conservation and increased revenues from resident reimbursements, will add financial value to your community. Communities typically realize an immediate 5-35% reduction of resident consumption upon implementation of a resident billing program. For most communities, this represents thousands of dollars in annual savings.

Reduce operating expenses. Our program increases community cash flow by removing the responsibility of paying for your residents’ utility services. Utility reimbursements are a source of revenue to help increase cash flow requirements for your community.

Protect rents. Your rents will remain competitive by eliminating exposure to the rising cost of utilities. Communities attempting to recover utility costs in the rent are at risk due to the frequent increases imposed by utility providers. Resident utility billing will allow you to adjust rents to fit the market rather than adjusting rents to recover utility costs.

Promote Resident Conservation. Residents will learn and practice conservation of utility consumption when they become financially responsible for what they use. Studies conducted by the National Apartment Association show that residents that are directly billed used significantly less electric, water, and gas than residents whose utilities were included in rent:

• Residents in a RUBS (Ratio Utility Billing System) program conserved 5-25%.
• Residents in a submetering program conserved 15-35%.

Metered Allocation

Metered allocation billing uses consumption measured from individual meters installed in each unit. We are able to read and process readings from many types of meter systems used to produce resident bills. There are two types of metered allocation methods that are used, full and partial allocation:

Full allocation meters measure total consumption of energy and/or water for each unit. Meter readings are obtained, the consumption of the unit is calculated, and the appropriate rate is applied to compute the resident charges. Residents are billed at the same rate for utilities as the local provider charges the community. Often times this is a commercial rate that will save your resident a substantial amount of money.

Partial allocation meters measure only a portion of the total resident consumption. This applies specifically to water consumption. In some communities, water meters are installed after construction is completed. In order to measure water consumption, a water meter is placed on the hot water line. Total unit consumption is then calculated based on hot water usage using an algorithm that is calculated using total property consumption.

RUBS Allocation

RUBS (Ratio Utility Billing System) allocation billing is used to allocate consumption to residents when individual units are not metered. The total consumption for the community is allocated to the occupied units less the common area consumption. Consumption is typically allocated to occupied units based on the number of occupants and/or the square footage of the units. Consumption is charged to the resident at the local authority rate.

Flat Rate Allocation

Flat rate allocation billing charges residents a flat rate for utility services, garbage pickup, cable, rent, or any other services. For flat rate billing of utilities, we will closely monitor the local authority rates to ensure the flat-billed charges provide adequate recovery.

Conservation Assistance

We offer earth-friendly services to you and your residents. We provide a comprehensive conservation program including meter installation and maintenance, usage analysis, leak detection, and fixture upgrade recommendations. Our team of conservation specialists can assist and educate your community staff and your residents in order to keep utility bills as low as possible. Contact your OnePoint Account Manager to discuss your communities’ specific need and help you select products that will best meet your needs.

We are pleased to provide you with the latest technology in leak detection. With the rising cost of water, undetected leaks could be costing your community thousands of dollars each year. With state-of-the-art technology, we can provide you with a simple, accurate, and low-cost method of determining whether leaks exist on your property. Please contact us to discuss this valuable service.