Searching for a submetering company turns up two very different kinds of business under the same label: firms that install and service meters and bill your residents for years, and firms that sell meters and leave the rest to you. The price quotes can look similar. The next five years will not. These are the questions we would ask any provider, including us.
1. Do you install, read, bill, and maintain, or only some of those?
The value of submetering is in the whole chain. A provider that installs but does not bill, or bills but subcontracts installation, leaves you managing hand-offs. Ask who you call when a meter stops reporting and who you call when a resident disputes a bill. If those are two different companies, expect the two to point at each other.
2. How are the meters read?
Wireless daily reads are the standard. Monthly manual reads mean higher labor cost, delayed leak detection, and estimated bills when someone cannot get into a unit. Ask how quickly a non-reporting meter is noticed and what happens next.
3. What standards do the meters meet?
Residents will question bills. Meters built to recognized standards make the answer simple. For water, ask whether the meters meet AWWA C708 performance standards and carry NSF/ANSI 61 and NSF/ANSI 372 certification for drinking water contact and lead content. For electric, ask for the accuracy class and whether the meter holds its reading through a power outage.
4. Which property management systems do you integrate with?
If you want utility charges posted to resident ledgers, the provider needs a working integration with your system, whether that is Yardi, RealPage, Entrata, AppFolio, Rent Manager, or something else. Ask whether charges post automatically or arrive as a file someone uploads.
5. Who answers resident calls?
Every submetered property generates resident questions. Ask whether the provider has a contact center, where it is located, and whether it handles calls only for properties where the provider collects or for all clients.
6. What are the collection options?
Some owners want the provider to invoice and collect. Others want charges to flow with rent. A good provider offers both and can explain which fits your operation. See how the two models differ.
7. Do you track the regulations in my state?
Utility billing law changes. Minnesota rewrote its shared-meter rules in 2024. Colorado set new RUBS conditions and a 2027 submetering mandate in 2026. Ask how the provider tracks changes in your states and whether it will tell you when your program needs adjusting.
8. What is included in the price, and what is not?
Ask for the installed cost per unit, the monthly billing fee per unit, and whether meter maintenance, replacement, and resident support are included. A low install quote with maintenance billed separately can cost more by year three.
9. What does the contract look like?
Term length, what happens to the meters at the end, and whether you can change collection models mid-contract. Meters you own are a lot easier to transition than meters you lease.
10. Can I talk to a client with a property like mine?
Any provider with a track record can produce a reference in your property type and region.
Red flags
- Quotes without a site survey
- No answer to “who owns the meters”
- Resident support handled by email only
- No named integration with your property management software
- A provider that does not know your state’s current rules
How UMS answers these
We install, read, bill, and maintain, with more than 20 years and 100,000 units behind us. Wireless daily reads, water meters that meet AWWA C708 and NSF/ANSI 61 and 372, a US-based contact center for every client, both collection models, and integrations with the major property management systems. Ask us the ten questions. Request a quote.