Re: Allocating Common Costs by an Algorithm e.g. based on # adults and sq. ft.
From: Ken Winter (kensunward.org)
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2021 09:26:52 -0800 (PST)
The third alternative is submetering of unit utilities.  See
https://docs.google.com/document/d/14kO0ncu6-G0W_qJKJqsjxXT9xYAotIWSXGhqTK1aF0c/edit?usp=sharing
for more.

On Wed, Mar 10, 2021 at 11:35 AM R Philip Dowds via Cohousing-L <
cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org> wrote:

> I here detect some alternative philosophies about cost sharing in
> cohousing.
>
> The most communitarian is all-in-together, w/ each dwelling unit or
> household paying an equal share, one-for-one.  The popular variant of this
> approach is that all common expenses are split in proportion to unit value,
> for which unit square footage is seen as an acceptable proxy.
>
> At the other end of the scale, we have pay-per-use.  Separate utility
> metering is popular for those who advocate pay-per-use — partly because the
> frugal don’t want to pay for the extravagances of those who “waste” power,
> water, etc, and partly because many believe that wastefulness is more
> likely if no measurable financial penalty accrues to the profligate.  But
> it is usually true that one common meter will deliver utilities at
> significantly lower cost all around than many individual meters.  After
> committing to one common meter, it’s a matter of how much additional time
> and money one wants to spend recapturing the data lost from, and
> re-assigning dollar costs to, the individual households.
>
> There are odd gray areas between these two extremes.  Some communities
> have a per use charging system for common laundry equipment, and in other
> communities, laundry machines are provide as a “free” amenity available to
> all, just like the common kitchen or toilets.  I’ve never heard of pay
> toilets in cohousing, but it’s kind of the logical end point of the
> pay-per-use model.
>
> Speaking as the Treasurer of a community which has fairly complex
> pay-per-use protocols, my general advice is:  Be sure it’s really worth it
> to you.  You can end up with pretty elaborate accounting challenges.
>
> Thanks,
> RPD
>
> > On Mar 10, 2021, at 11:05 AM, Ken Winter <ken [at] sunward.org> wrote:
> >
> > I'd strongly urge you to build in a system where each unit pays for its
> > actual, measured usage of water, electricity, and gas.  You can get
> actual
> > measurements for each unit in two ways: (1) each unit has a meter
> provided
> > by the local utility and pays the utility directly, or (2) the local
> > utility has meters on each building and the community has submeters for
> > each unit, the community pays the utility and each unit owner pays the
> > community for that unit's usage as measured by its submeter.  At Sunward
> > Cohousing, after 20 years of "we all pay for everything", we have
> > retrofitted submeters into our water billing system.  For what we did,
> why,
> > and how, see
> >
> https://docs.google.com/document/d/14kO0ncu6-G0W_qJKJqsjxXT9xYAotIWSXGhqTK1aF0c/edit?usp=sharing
> .
> > This article is a quite incomplete work-in-progress, but the "why"
> section
> > is pretty solid.
> >
> > ~ Ken Winter, Sunward Cohousing, Ann Arbor MI
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Mar 10, 2021 at 7:51 AM Jim Bronson <jimbronsonashland [at] 
> > gmail.com
> >
> > wrote:
> >
> >> Dear Cohousing Communities,
> >>
> >> River Song is planning to break ground soon.  We are thinking about
> having
> >> one electric meter per building and one water meter for the whole
> community
> >> to save costs - which may be as much as $600/month compared to having
> >> meters for each unit.
> >>
> >> When we are up and running our HOA will allocate common costs monthly or
> >> quarterly.  We have heard from other cohousing communities that they
> have
> >> evolved a way of fairly allocating common costs using an algorithm
> based on
> >> # of adults and square footage for each unit.
> >>
> >> For our planning, I have attached a one page MS Word doc that shows an
> >> example of how we think this could look for the simple case of a 4 unit
> >> cohousing community.  I would appreciate hearing from communities
> >> experienced in using algorithm allocation for common costs about what
> they
> >> have learned.  Also, I would like to know how their algorithms may allow
> >> for individual variations, for example a private unit having their own
> >> solar pv, having a hot tub or an electric car charging station, etc.
> >>
> >> Thanks for sharing what you have learned.
> >> Jim Bronson (for the Design Team)
> >> River Song Cohousing Community
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> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
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