What the Best Submetering Companies for Apartments Do Differently
Last reviewed September 2026NES Editorial, checked by the Billing & Compliance team
The best submetering companies for apartments install, read, bill, and handle compliance with their own people, on meters you keep. Here is how to tell.
How do I pick the best submetering company for my apartments?
Judge a submetering company on what will shape years of service, not the pitch. The best ones run the whole job with their own staff, from the install and daily reads to resident billing, collections, and state compliance, so nothing is subcontracted and no one points fingers when a bill is wrong. They put meters in that you own outright, from established manufacturers, so you are never locked in. They itemize every fee in writing before you sign. And they answer a resident's call with a person, in English and Spanish. NES has worked that way since 1968, privately owned, for communities of 80 or more units in 43+ states.
Seven things the best providers have in common
- Their own installers and their own meter readers. Subcontracted installs and estimated reads are where resident disputes start
- Meters the owner keeps, from established manufacturers, so the equipment stays if the contract ends
- Every fee in writing: install, equipment, monthly billing, meter replacement, software, and what is not included
- A compliance team that holds the state filings for you (Texas PUCT registration, North Carolina NCUC certificate) and tracks law changes in every state you own in
- Resident support by phone, in more than one language, with the same team every time
- Vacant-unit recovery, final bills, and collections included rather than sold separately
- Integrations with the property management systems you already run
Questions to ask before you sign
- Who owns the meters when the contract ends?
- Who installs and who reads, and are they your employees?
- What is the full fee schedule, and what is excluded?
- Which state registrations and certificates do you hold for us, and who updates them when the law changes?
- Who answers a resident's call about a bill?
- Can I call three properties you have billed for more than five years?
- How long have you done this, and who owns the company now?
How NES answers those questions
Own staff for installs, daily reads, billing, collections, and support. Meters the owner keeps, from established manufacturers. Fees itemized in the bid. An in-house compliance team that holds the Texas and North Carolina filings and tracks the rest. Bilingual resident support by phone. Vacant recovery, final bills, and collections included. Yardi, RealPage, AppFolio, and other integrations. Privately owned since 1968, and references you can call.
When NES is not the right fit
NES takes communities of 80 or more units. A 20-unit building is better served by a small-property provider. An owner who only wants software on top of meters that are already installed and read does not need a full-service company. For everyone else, the checklist above is the whole comparison.
Related questions
Get submetering and compliance updates
A short email when we publish new guides or a state changes its billing rules. No sales sequences, and you can unsubscribe any time.
We handle your email as described in our privacy policy.
Thinking about submetering your property?
NES installs the meters, reads them, and bills your residents, in-house since 1968. Send your property details for a free, no-obligation estimate.
Prefer a form? Open the quote page.