Grand Prairie Utility Submetering and Billing
Solutions That Can Be Completely Customized
Grand Prairie Utility Submetering and Billing
for Water, Electric and Gas
Oates Energy specializes in customized Grand Prairie utility submetering and billing solutions. We do not ask or property managers to select from pre-packaged or bundle sets of services and expect them to adjust to how we provide our services. Instead, we help property managers select they services they would like us to provide and then help them adjust the services they selected so they are provided the way they need them to be provided. There is simply is no match to our flexibility. Below is a more detailed look at how we serve a few of our key markets.
Utility Submetering & Billing
for Multifamily Communities
Oates Energy was built to be something that our competitors are not; “flexible”. Our goal from the beginning was and still is to be the most customizable Grand Prairie utility submetering and billing services provided in our industry. Everything from which services you would like us to provide, to which utilities you would like us to bill for, to other monthly fees and charges that you would like us to bill for, to our RUBS formula billing for communities that do not have utility submeters. We even provide online services and billing customer care for residents using your unique billing policies and guidelines. Speak with us about a customized solution for your community.
Utility Submetering & Billing
for Condominium Communities
When it come to Grand Prairie utility submetering and billing, condominium and multifamily communities have a lot in common. But there is an underlying difference that we can be a great help with. While the typical goal of a multifamily community is to operate at a profit, condominium property managers focus on keeping monthly HOA or Condo fees as low as possible for their residents. And encouraging utility conservation by recovering utility costs based on actual usage is an effective way to keep HOA and condo fees as low as possible.
We specialize in customizing our utility submetering and billing solutions to provide only the services our clients need the way they need them to be provided. This level of flexibility is uncommon in our industry but we do it for all types of condominium communities all over the country. Speak with us about a solution designed to recover more of your community’s utility costs.
Utility Submetering & Billing
for Mobile Home Parks
Accurately recovering utility costs can be challenging for mobile home parks. Many parks have different utilities submetered for different residents and residences with no utility submeters at all. And many parks also charge residents for a variety of monthly charges such as cable TV, Internet, etc. We customize our Grand Prairie utility submetering and billing solutions for all of these types of scenarios.
We can bill for utilities based on actual usage, or we can bill for utilities based on a RUBS formula. We also provide online services and U.S. based billing customer care for residents. If your park has over 50 residences, we can customize a cost effective solution that will recover more of your park’s utility costs.
Utility Submetering & Billing
for Commercial Properties
A key aspect of managing commercial properties is accurately and efficiently recovering utility costs. And with the high demands of commercial tenants such as restaurants and large grocery stores compared to the utility usage of small retailers or business offices, accurately recovering utility costs can be challenging.
At Oates Energy, we specialize in designing and if necessary installing utility submetering solutions that accurately track utility usage for water, electric and gas. If a property has older remote read submeters, we provide meter reading services. We then work with the property manager to customize a billing solution with only the services they need and then adjust the services they selected to the way they would like them to be provided. Contact us about a customized Grand Prairie utility submetering and billing solution designed specifically for your property.
Submetering Installation
for New Construction
As a nationwide utility submetering contractor, we partner with general contactors to install water, electric and gas submetering systems for new multifamily and commercial construction projects all over the country. We have an excellent reputation for quality workmanship and completing projects on time and within budget. If you are planning a new project that calls for utility submetering system installation, we would be pleased to provide you with a detailed bid.
Utility Submetering Laws and Regulations in Texas
A political subdivision may not authorize the construction or occupancy of a new apartment house, including the conversion of property to a condominium, unless the construction plan provides for the measurement of the quantity of electricity consumed by the occupants of each dwelling unit of the apartment house, either by individual metering by the utility company or by submetering by the owner.
This section does not prohibit a political subdivision from issuing a permit to a nonprofit organization for construction of a new apartment house for occupancy by low-income elderly tenants if the nonprofit organization establishes, by submitting engineering and cost data and a sworn statement, that all cost savings will be passed on to the low-income elderly tenants (Tex. Utilities Code Ann. §184.012).
The Texas Water Code requires each unit in a building with five or more residential units built after Jan. 1, 2003 to have either an individual water utility meter or sub-meter. If feasible, it requires water companies to install individual meters in such buildings at the building owner’s request. The water company can charge reasonable costs for installing the meters. If the water company determines that installing these meters is not feasible, the law requires the property owner to install a plumbing system compatible with sub-meters.
For submetering multi-unit property owners, the state’s water code limits submetering charges on tenants to the cost per gallon and applicable taxes and surcharges charged by the water company; a late fee up to five percent of the late bill; and a service charge of up to nine percent of the costs related to submetering allocated to each sub-metered unit. The code also requires the property owners to maintain adequate records and make them available to tenants and sub-meters to meet certain standards for accuracy, testing, and record keeping (Texas Water Code §13.501 through 13.506).
*Information courtesy of:
The National Conference of State Legislatures
WestlawNext, 2016.
