Loading ...Manage Heating Bills – Apartments in Boston
In the greater Boston area, many of the rental units are in extremely old buildings and the combination of an inefficient heating system with poor insulation can lead to 100’s of dollars per month in heating costs.
The best case scenario for renters is to get the heat and hot water included in the rent. That way any insulation or efficiency problems are the landlord’s responsibility.
Before signing a lease:
When visiting a potential apartment you want to ask what kind of heating system they have in place.
- A gas-based furnace that heats a hot-water baseboard is, in my opinion, the most economic.
- Gas bills are somewhat cheaper than electric or oil.
- Oil based burner – Oil, like, we all KNOW is expensive right now.
- Electric baseboard – from my experience this is the most expensive heating system to the renter.
Another questions or observation should be the windows – are they new, old?
As far as insulation goes, try and see if the unit is drafty. If you place your hand on an outside-facing wall (from the inside) in a poorly insulated unit, you can sometimes FEEL the draft. That draft is heat and your $$$ escaping and being replace by cold air from outside.
Another good bit of advice is to call N-Star, KeySpan or the previous tenant or landlord what the average bill is during the winter season.
Like anything else, some landlords might be willing to negotiate the utilities when paying a higher rent price.
Hope this helps.
IG
