Not my building but I'm concerned

[Food Lady]

The former management couple for my apartment complex just retired and the management company bought the complex behind us. That one has had tenant behavior problems as has mine. I can understand with this new growth why the company is bearing down on us in regard to rules. That's not a bad thing in and of itself. But in this case I feel like they are trying to enforce a rule that isn't.

We don't pay for water as tenants. It's shared. I got a text message that the new manager sent en masse about another building. (I think it's just easier for her to send all rather than look up all the numbers of the people in that particular building.) She received a "water usage warning" and wants to know whose toilet or sink is running and needs to be fixed. They are threatening inspections on Friday if it's not resolved.

With 16 units in each building I don't think a running faucet is necessarily the cause. It could be long showers or extra baths or the countertop dishwashers some people have. Or it could be countertop clothes washers like mine which is the cause for concern. Running 2 to 3 loads in mine uses about as much water as a bath because it's small and due to design, needs a minimum of water that doesn't even cover all the clothing. It spins like a front-loader. Plus, I catch the rinse water from my spin dryer and use that to wash the next load.
*But I have a feeling they are looking for reasons to find washers for dishes or clothes*, against which there is no rule. Well, at least I don't think there's anything in my lease. And there is certainly no water usage limit for any tenant. How are they going to enforce that? Forbid people to take more than one bath a week? Limit people to 5 minute showers? We can only wash one load of dishes a day? (Most of us hand wash, which uses more water.)

It could totally just be that there really is a running toilet or something and that's that. It's not even my building. And then again, this could mean trouble.

I do notice that the boom is lowered only on some. In October we were told no living room furniture on the porches and banging-the-wall dude next to me has an easy chair out there. Some cars were towed and others left.

And I'm getting sick of the emails and texts and notes on our doors. Yes, I got the memo about the cover sheet on my TPS report.

[Ironclad Alibi]

... Yes, I got the memo about the cover sheet on my TPS report.

Just to be sure here is another copy of the memo about TSP report cover sheets.

As for the water usage I do recall stories online (possibly here) about broken water pipes that are hidden and not found until a flood disaster happens.

Not knowing how much extra water triggers the warning, it is a way to start an investigation. Hopefully it did mention which complex the warning was for.

[Food Lady]

Yeah, it was my complex but two buildings away. We do have a history of broken pipes in winter because of the cold, and it's been in the single digits. You'd think that would've gotten reported by the tenants unless it was in an unoccupied unit.

[notalwaysright]

My complex installed meters and will start charging us for water starting in January. Ridiculous. I've been watching for places to move but it's so expensive to move.

[Mental_Mouse]

Excessive water usage can be from a leaky faucet or such -- at my place, they didn't fix my dripping shower fixtures until the second time I'd reminded them that I'm not paying the water bill. And then it wasn't fixed very well.

But it can also be from a leaky pipe or fixture. They've recently replaced my water heater because it was flooding the downstairs apartment, and they just reseated my toilet after that turned out to be the true culprit behind a recent leak. (I had reported it along with the leaky shower when I found an earthworm in my bathtub.)

While folding water into rent is an obvious simplification, it also does produce perverse incentives, and I suspect that over the coming years separate water bills will become much more common.

[TheSHAD0W]

My complex installed meters and will start charging us for water starting in January. Ridiculous.

Meh. It's another example of the tragedy of the commons, make something free and people abuse it. Do you have any idea how much you'll be paying?

While folding water into rent is an obvious simplification, it also does produce perverse incentives, and I suspect that over the coming years separate water bills will become much more common.

There are ways to obtain relief if an apartment manager doesn't perform needed repairs in a timely manner. Check your local regulations.

[Mental_Mouse]

There are ways to obtain relief if an apartment manager doesn't perform needed repairs in a timely manner. Check your local regulations.

This normally isn't down at "legal aid required" levels, but I am in subsidized housing, and the development's own maintenance team doesn't get to everything. On the other hand, they occasionally bring in contractors, and the last batch of those was great -- not only fixed the leak they'd been sent after, but adjusted the heater properly (it was set to 125F!) and then noticed my loose floorboards and nailed them properly into place for good measure.