Utilities and reduction of services
With most multi-family properties, there is a mix of how utilities and shared services are paid for. The main four utilities of Water, Power, Trash and Natural Gas are widely known and in addition, there are service costs for Waste Water, Cable Television, Telephone and Internet Services.
Any and all of these can be included in a residential lease but with the new rules from Measure H, there may be some reasons to look more carefully at including any utilities in a rental contract. The main issue is that the costs of these services can be increased without any provision from the Rental Housing Board via the Measure H Charter Amendment to offset these costs with increases in rent.
For example, in 2023, the Pasadena Water and Power (PWP) board and City Council are discussing plans to provide electricity that will be environmentally better but will cost more to produce, distribute and manage. Those increased costs will be passed to rate payers but there is no realistic ability to increase rental rates for these services.
If you are currently including utilities in your rental contract and change your lease terms, there may be recourse due to the tenants as a result. When I asked the Rental Housing Board for guidance on if there is any way to increase rents as a result of higher utility charges or what would happen if a landlord stops paying for the service, I received the message below.
Per the RHB email support system on November 1, 2023:
The Charter does not provide guidance regarding how utility charges should be shared among owners and tenants but, provides tenants with the ability to pursue a rent reduction where utilities are taken away.
Section 1813 of the Pasadena Fair and Equitable Housing Charter provides a petition-based system, which will allow landlords and/or tenants of units covered under the Charter to seek a rent adjustment. Under this section, tenants of covered units will have the right to pursue a rent reduction in the event of a decrease in Housing Services or maintenance (Section 1813(d)). Per the Charter, "Housing Services" include "Utility Charges that are paid by the Landlord" (Section 1803(k)). To be sure, "Utility Charges" are defined as "[a]ny charges for gas, electricity, water, garbage, sewer, telephone, cable, internet, or other service relating to the use and occupancy of a Rental Unit" (Section 1803(bb)).
For Pasadena, these are the contacts for utilities and service providers.
Pasadena Water and Power - https://pwp.cityofpasadena.net/
Natural Gas - https://www.socalgas.com/
Trash Service (single family up to 4 units) - https://www.cityofpasadena.net/public-works/waste-management/
Trash Service (commercial) - See list of approved commercial haulers on the City website at this link https://www.cityofpasadena.net/public-works/waste-management/#commercial-haulers
Cable TV - https://www.spectrum.com/cable-tv-service/california/pasadena
Telephone - https://www.att.com/
Schedule of trash service in Pasadena -https://www.cityofpasadena.net/public-works/waste-management/#schedule-and-collection
