Why building trust and loyalty with passive investors is at the crux of real estate investing
December 1, 2022
In this multifamily asset management case study, I will explore how we addressed abnormally high water bills at our 172 unit property, Del Sol on Royal Lane, in Dallas — ultimately cutting our cost in half. Del Sol is an all-bills-paid property. Therefore, water conservation is essential as all savings go directly to the bottom line. By the way, Del Sol was one of the first deals for which we raised capital using our real estate syndication software.
When reviewing financial statements for potential acquisitions, I am frequently amazed by the incredibly high utility costs. Owners often seem content to let these slide — perhaps assuming they are typical of that property type and location or simply unwilling to spend the time and expense to find a long-term solution.
Notwithstanding, all competent multifamily asset management professionals and operators recognize the importance of implementing a water conservation plan. It includes efficient toilets, showerheads, and faucet aerators. But if water bills remain high after those changes are made, other steps need to be taken to determine the full cause.
The three main factors we addressed are:
Before delving into each of the individual factors in this multifamily asset management case study, we should discuss how we determine that a property’s water usage is abnormally high, to begin with.
By multiplying the average daily usage per person by the average number of occupants per unit, we can produce a benchmark number to compare our property’s usage.
Suppose we figure our property has 2.5 people per unit. In this case, multiply that by 80 gallons x 30 days, and we get 6,000 gallons per unit per month. If usage is significantly higher than that, there is a good chance we have room for improvement.
The most straightforward factor in multifamily asset management to address is fixtures. Various water conservation companies will quickly go through every unit and swap out all toilets, showerheads, and aerators.
When we did our due diligence on the Del Sol, we found that all toilets had already been replaced with efficient models. We went ahead and replaced all showerheads and aerators, but that failed to make much of a dent in usage.
Leaks are often a major issue at older properties that have not undergone any plumbing replacement over the years. Del Sol fits into that high-risk category, having been built in 1966.
During due diligence, we discovered some evidence of leaks. However, the full scope of the issue did not become evident until we began the foundation work and started opening up floors and walls.
The extent of the leaks turned out to be much greater than anticipated. Therefore, the ensuing plumbing repairs have been our largest unanticipated expense to date. During the first few months of ownership, we focused relentlessly on finding and fixing all leaks. We hired leak detection contractors who use specialized equipment to locate leaks that are otherwise hidden by walls and floors.
Although we spent more money upfront to fix the leaks, the expense will ultimately pay off many times via a huge water usage decrease.
Over occupancy is perhaps the most overlooked factor contributing to high water usage. This refers to more people living in a unit than the lease permits. During due diligence, we discovered this issue when we found that many tenants were converting living areas to bedrooms and/or had multiple mattresses in a single room.
This situation arose because the previous owner failed to enforce the occupancy restrictions in the leases.
As you can see in the graph below, by focusing on these three factors and implementing a monitoring system, we were able to substantially decrease the water cost at Del Sol over the course of our first 6 months of ownership.
Knowing how to manage and optimize such costs adds credibility and helps you build your track record as a syndicator. As a result, making investor relationships and raising equity easier. We hope you found this multifamily asset management case study helpful. We will be happy to hear from you if you have any questions. If you’re interested in multifamily real estate, feel free to check out our multifamily due diligence checklist as well.