What Is Water Submetering?
Last reviewed September 2026NES Editorial, checked by the Billing & Compliance team
Water submetering puts a meter on each unit so residents pay for the water they actually use, instead of the owner absorbing one master bill.
What is water submetering?
Water submetering is the practice of installing an individual water meter on each unit in a multifamily property, then billing each resident for the water they actually use. The property still has one master meter from the utility, but submeters measure each unit underneath it. The idea has been around since the 1920s, and today's meters read wirelessly every day. When residents pay for their own use, consumption usually drops 15 to 30 percent, leaks surface quickly, and the owner recovers cost instead of carrying it in rent. NES installs the meters, reads them, and bills residents in-house.
How water submetering works
The utility bills the property through one master meter. A submeter on each unit measures that unit's use, and each resident is billed for their own consumption. Common-area water is measured separately so it is not pushed onto residents.
Why owners use it
- Water consumption usually drops 15 to 30 percent once residents pay for their use
- Leaks are caught early through daily reads
- The owner recovers cost instead of carrying it in rent
- Most installs pay for themselves in 12 to 18 months, and some sooner
- Lower water expense raises cash flow, which raises what the property is worth
What it means for rent
When the owner pays one master water bill, rising water rates end up in the rent sooner or later. Submetering moves the cost to usage instead, so the owner is not forced into rent increases just to keep up with the water utility. NES installs the meters, monitors them, and bills each resident for their exact water usage every month, which keeps the rent number and the water number separate.
What types of property can be submetered
All types of real estate can be water submetered. NES serves new construction and existing properties, those with meters already in place and those that need equipment, including apartment communities, mobile home parks, townhomes, and condominiums. NES specializes in properties with 80 or more multifamily units. Where the plumbing makes meters impractical, ratio or formula-based utility billing is the alternative.
The rules to know first
Water submetering is regulated, and the laws vary by state and county and change frequently. They cover how meters are installed and maintained, how accurate they must be, and how residents may be billed. NES provides submetering in more than 43 states and has a compliance team that monitors the regulations for every community it serves, so the billing is set up correctly from the start.
Related questions
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