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Jake and Gino Multifamily Investing Entrepreneurs

What is Ratio Utility Billing System (RUBS) and How Multifamily Syndicators Can Leverage It

Jake and Gino Multifamily Investing Entrepreneurs

Jake & Gino

Buyingapartmentbuildings, Investingsmart, Multifamilyrealestateinvesting, Business, Smartinvesting, Jakeandgino, Apartmentinvesting, Investing, Commercialrealestateinvesting, Makingmoney, Buyingrealestate, Realestateinvestment, Wheelbarrowprofits, Realestateinvesting, Cashflow

5831 Ratings

🗓️ 24 April 2023

⏱️ 10 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this podcast, we'll be discussing what is Ratio Utility Billing System, or RUBS for short. RUBS is a method used by some landlords and property managers to allocate utility costs among tenants in multi-unit buildings, such as apartments or condos. Instead of installing separate utility meters for each unit, the landlord can estimate each unit's share of the overall utility bill based on various factors, such as square footage, number of occupants, or some other formula. The landlord then bills each tenant for their share of the utility costs, which can include water, gas, electricity, or other services. The amount billed to each tenant is proportional to their estimated usage, hence the term "ratio" utility billing. RUBS can have advantages for both landlords and tenants. For landlords, it can reduce the cost and hassle of installing and maintaining separate meters for each unit. It can also provide an incentive for tenants to conserve energy or water, since they are paying for their own usage. For tenants, RUBS can offer a simpler and more predictable way of paying for utilities, since the billing is based on a fixed formula rather than actual meter readings. However, RUBS can also have some drawbacks and controversies. Critics argue that it can lead to unfair or inaccurate billing, especially if the estimation formula is flawed or biased. Some tenants may also resent paying for utilities that they feel are outside their control, such as common area lighting or swimming pool heating. In some jurisdictions, RUBS may be subject to regulations or legal challenges, so it's important to check with local laws and consult with legal or financial experts before implementing this billing method. That's a brief overview of what is Ratio Utility Billing. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below and don't forget to like and subscribe to our channel for more informative videos. Thanks for watching! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We're here to help create multifamily entrepreneurs... Here's how: Brand New? Start Here: https://jakeandgino.mykajabi.com/free-wheelbarrowprofits Want To Get Into Multifamily Real Estate Or Scale Your Current Portfolio Faster? Apply to join our PREMIER MULTIFAMILY INVESTING COMMUNITY & MENTORSHIP PROGRAM. (*Note: Our community is not for beginner investors) 👉https://jakeandgino.com/apply About Jake & Gino Jake & Gino are multifamily investors, operators, and mentors who have created a vertically integrated real estate company. They control over $250M in assets under management. They have created the Jake & Gino Premier Multifamily Community to teach others a simple three-step framework for investing in multifamily real estate. Connect with Jake & Gino on the social media platform you are most active on: https://jakeandgino.com/link-tree/ #realestateterms #multifamilyterms #RUBSmultifamily #multifamilyenergybilling #multifamilypropertymanagement #multifamilyoperations #ratioutilitybillingsystems #multifamilyinvesting #apartmentinvesing #multifamilysyndication #realestatetrends #investingstrategies

Transcript

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0:00.0

ratio utility billing system where you're going out, there's 30 units and you have, let's say,

0:04.3

$1,000 a month of water bills. You cannot bill back to the residents in excess of what you

0:09.9

pay, what you actually pay to the company. Hello, Ray Jinguino here, and today we are discussing ratio utility billing systems or rubs.

0:42.5

Now, this is a huge opportunity for multifamily investors.

0:45.8

This is one of the challenges, though, when you start out as a multifamily investor because

0:50.9

there are centralized meters for a lot of these apartment complexes. Developers put these

0:57.0

in initially because they're cheaper than individually metering each unit for water. This is very

1:02.8

common in 1970s and 1980s multifamily buildings. So, Gino, you have a 30-unit multifamily apartment building. It was built in

1:13.2

1985, okay, nice two bedrooms. What are some of the options, if you're looking to invest on this,

1:18.8

and the current ownership is paying for all the water and the sewer, what are some of the options as

1:24.2

an investor to turn this problem into an opportunity? Great question, Jake. I'm going to go

1:29.0

back to when I bought my first multifamily. It was a four unit and very similar situation, but it was

1:34.4

electric meters. So I remember it was one main meter for all the units. I remember driving to the

1:40.6

property and I'd be with my grumpy dad and my dad would say that guy's got the

1:44.6

light on the deck over there you're paying for electric i heard that 15 times i'm surprised he's just

1:49.6

didn't take the bulb out that's a good point i said dad what do you want me to do i mean like i can't be a

1:57.2

babysitter and i learned about you're going to go knock on the door. Hey, sir, can you please turn your exterior light off?

2:02.3

It's costing me?

2:03.1

That gets a little weird, right?

2:04.3

What I could have done is I could have raised a rent by 20 bucks for each unit, but that doesn't

2:07.8

seem fair because some of them are using electric and some aren't.

2:10.6

So I went the painful route.

...

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