Q. Is it legal for an apartment community to suddenly start making tenants pay a percentage of the cumulative water bill, when none of the apartments are individually metered?

When renters have a question concerning their tenancy, the first thing they should consult is their lease. What does the lease say concerning payment of utilities? Some landlords may be counting on their tenants not to read the lease, and those tenants who do not may end up needlessly paying a percentage of the cumulative water bill.

If the lease indicates that the landlord will provide and pay for water then an apartment community may not suddenly start making tenants pay a percentage of the cumulative water bill. Bear in mind that parties to a contract are free to modify the contract at a later date. If a tenant is willing to sign an addendum to the lease making him liable for a percentage of the water bill then that is his choice.

Notice I said both provide and pay for water. Ohio Revised Code 5321.04(A)(6) requires a landlord to supply running water. The Ohio Supreme Court declined to rule upon the issue of whether this means that the landlord must provide and also pay for running water. The Franklin County Court of Appeals held that supply did not also mean pay for running water. Here, in that court1s district, a landlord is not required by law to also pay for running water. So we head back to see what the lease says concerning payment.

If the lease simply indicates that the landlord will provide running water and the landlord has never previously billed the tenants for water, then a tenant can make a strong argument that the intention of the parties at the time of contract formation was that the landlord would provide and pay for water. A tenant would also argue that the parties had already contemplated the cost of water when they agreed to a specific sum for rent. In addition, if the lease does not indicate who would pay the water bill, the tenant would contend that the lease is ambiguous and should be interpreted against the drafter of the document, normally the landlord. All of these contentions are strong arguments against a sudden charge for a percentage of the cumulative water bill.

In the event that the landlord was shrewd or simply had good legal counsel, he would have included a provision in the lease which accounted for an increase in rent at a later date when the institution of the new water charges occurred.

Of course, the circumstances of each tenant may vary and some may be on a month to month tenancy. In such cases, a change in the terms of the tenancy must be accompanied by thirty days1 advance notice. Usually, the change in the terms of the tenancy is an increase in rent. Here it is the sudden charge of a percentage of the cumulative water bill. If the landlord provides the tenant with notice of the charge on September 2, the tenant, if he stays, will be liable for November1s water bill. Although thirty days from September 2 would be October 2, the change in the terms of the tenancy would not go into effect until November 1. The landlord would have had to provide notice by August 31 in order for the change to take effect at the beginning of October.

So far I have focused on whose responsibility it is to pay for water. Many readers may have first concerned themselves with the unfairness of a bachelor without a washer, dishwasher or access to an outdoor spigot having to pay 25% of the cumulative water bill when three other families of four are living nearby, doing seven loads of laundry a day, incessantly running the dishwasher, and detailing their mini-vans out front. Will he be forced to subsidize his neighbor1s profligate consumption of earth1s most precious resource? Must he vainly plead his case upon bended knee to the deaf ear of the uncompromising landlord?

If he signed a lease with such a provision or agreed to such change in the terms of his month to month tenancy or even signed an addendum to his lease making this change, then he will have to pay a percentage of the water bill. The lesson here is to read your lease before signing on the dotted line.

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Disclaimer: The information provided on ohiolandlordtenant.com is not intended to be legal advice, but general information related to legal issues commonly encountered. The law in your state may be different from that discussed here. The facts in your case may be different too.

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