Possibly Facing Eviction; Advice Needed

[RickMachE]

Offer to buy this - https://amzn.to/3AZ1wux. It's called a Kill A Watt Energy Usage Monitor. It costs $30. Plug it into the wall, plug the 120v cord into it, and DON'T reset it. It will provide the usage of electricity. Each month, go in on the 30th and take a picture of the relevant screens to show your usage, and pay them the usage times the rate agreed to. Done.

Start by paying them $30 for the coming month, and then each month take a reading at the end of the month and do the math. "I paid $30 for December, and on 12/31/22 reading was XX kWh. XX x agreed upon price = $YY.YY."

They work great. Our library loans them out for free.

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[generaltso]

So to further clarify, I don't mind paying for what I ACTUALLY use. That isn't an issue even though I was told I wouldn't have to pay for the garage.

The problem I have is in this brand-new apartment complex that is advertised as luxury, they want me to cover the cost of the upgrade which has been quoted to me as over $2500. I don't know where this figure of $100 dollars comes from... That would be nice though.

I've asked this at least twice, but I'll ask again. Since they said that you can pay additional rent to be able to use the outlet, how much is the additional rent? If you don't know the answer to that question, I don't see what you have to be worked up about.

 

[SightUp]

I've asked this at least twice, but I'll ask again. Since they said that you can pay additional rent to be able to use the outlet, how much is the additional rent?

They did not say. Nor do I actually care because they wouldn't be fair about it. I am basing this off of past experiences.

 

[Motomax]

So to further clarify, I don't mind paying for what I ACTUALLY use. That isn't an issue even though I was told I wouldn't have to pay for the garage.

The problem I have is in this brand-new apartment complex that is advertised as luxury, they want me to cover the cost of the upgrade which has been quoted to me as over $2500. I don't know where this figure of $100 dollars comes from... That would be nice though.

They offered to just increase rent instead of a meter. Whats their proposed increase? Your electricity is dirt cheap, almost to the point of being irrelevant. Did you provide a break down of how much you’re using and what it’s costing them?

 

[Logal727]

So to further clarify, I don't mind paying for what I ACTUALLY use. That isn't an issue even though I was told I wouldn't have to pay for the garage.

The problem I have is in this brand-new apartment complex that is advertised as luxury, they want me to cover the cost of the upgrade which has been quoted to me as over $2500. I don't know where this figure of $100 dollars comes from... That would be nice though.

Luxury has no actual meaning when it comes to apartments except when they want to get out of being required to take govt subsidized housing. I’ve seen old Section 8 apartments refurbished with new paint jobs and then the word luxury is added to their name and now they don’t have to allow poor people in at all.

 

[generaltso]

They did not say. Nor do I actually care because they wouldn't be fair about it. I am basing this off of past experiences.

You didn't think this would be an important question to ask before talking to a $175/hr lawyer?

 

[mjs020294]

Now that it's on the landlord's radar, if the power bill is higher than usual, they'll know exactly where to look firs

Its a 15/20 AMP 120v socket and he commutes 10 miles a day. It is HIGHLY unlikely his consumption will make much of an impact on an entire apartment complex with an office, janitors, garages and outside lighting. Remember the tariff in his area is only 6 cents a kWh; charging for 7,500 miles a year is only $12 a month.

If they wanted to modify the garage, i.e remove the socket, that would mean revising the lease agreement.

 

[generaltso]

If they wanted to modify the garage, i.e remove the socket, that would mean revising the lease agreement.

Why? Does the lease say that they can't put a lockbox over an outlet that they never granted permission to use? In my opinion, all of this discussion is irrelevant until the OP finds out how much additional rent we're even talking about. Is it worth a fight for $10/mo?

 

[SightUp]

I am not a lawyer. I do not have the knowledge or know how to come out ahead in such matters when previously dealing with the management of this complex. What I do know is that they have been completely unreasonablin getting previous matters handeled for me. I can deal with those though. I cannot deal with an uncharged car.

 

[babgvant]

I don't feel you guys read my post in the entirety. I moved into this place because I was told that the garage was mine and I could use the 120v charge. That has changed several months into the lease here. I am the bad guy now?

Stupid question, why are the 120V plugs in the garage if you're not allowed to use them?

FWIW, I think you're in the right, but it's going to be hard to "win" this fight because you have to pay to fight.

It should be really easy to put a monitoring device b/w your L1 EVSE and the car. Get a couple days of use recorded, offer to apply some reasonable multiplier, pay the $20 (if that) extra a month. A lot of people have no concept of how cheap it is to charge an EV.

 

[connoisseurr]

Rather than having an expensive fixed meter installed, could OP ask the management company to install a smart outlet monitoring device to capture the energy used, and then pay the fee for actual energy used?

Just read @RickMachE post about the Kill-a-watt. I'd definitely recommend this as a solution.

Offer to buy this - https://amzn.to/3AZ1wux. It's called a Kill A Watt Energy Usage Monitor. It costs $30. Plug it into the wall, plug the 120v cord into it, and DON'T reset it. It will provide the usage of electricity. Each month, go in on the 30th and take a picture of the relevant screens to show your usage, and pay them the usage times the rate agreed to. Done.

Start by paying them $30 for the coming month, and then each month take a reading at the end of the month and do the math. "I paid $30 for December, and on 12/31/22 reading was XX kWh. XX x agreed upon price = $YY.YY."

They work great. Our library loans them out for free.

 

[JDrazMME]

I read about half the posts so not sure how many people commented the way I am about to so I apologize if this has been said many times...My feeling is you are looking for a legal loophole for free charging. Instead of focusing on the legal aspects, how about doing what's right? Instead of mooching off your neighbors for free electrons, pay for the electricity you use to charge your car. Work with the landlord to come up with a fair, agreed upon way to calculate the cost and pay for it yourself.

 

[AhardFSU]

I am not a lawyer. I do not have the knowledge or know how to come out ahead in such matters when previously dealing with the management of this complex. What I do know is that they have been completely unreasonablin getting previous matters handeled for me. I can deal with those though. I cannot deal with an uncharged car.

Read Rick’s post and get the Kill A Watt thing. Try to negotiate a reasonable amount applicable to your actual usage.

 

[Chuck]

I'm not sure I'd trust a lawyer that only charges $175/hr. That barely pays his college loans.

 

[connoisseurr]

I read about half the posts so not sure how many people commented the way I am about to so I apologize if this has been said many times...My feeling is you are looking for a legal loophole for free charging. Instead of focusing on the legal aspects, how about doing what's right? Instead of mooching off your neighbors for free electrons, pay for the electricity you use to charge your car. Work with the landlord to come up with a fair, agreed upon way to calculate the cost and pay for it yourself.

Negative, OP thinks it's unreasonable that the management company had a change and now they're enforcing reconciliation for energy consumption and monitoring devices.

My thoughts:

• Ask the management company to continue allowing use of outlets for trickle charging, and then propose they offer EV charging installations in the community - either at a central location, or offer them to individuals with garages and assigned parking spaces.
  • The benefit is that the stations installed have substantial tax deductions incorporated, and the management company can also charge a montlhy access fee, essentially profiting from the installation over time
• Ask the management company to cover or split the fee of the meter installation in the garage - and at that rate, install a 240V circuit so OP can have access to L2 charging
• OP and management company agree to a reasonably low monthly fee for utilization of the garage outlet for charging. I've seen others mention $10/mo and that sounds very fair, even $20/mo is fair. If charging for 8-hours daily, that would be roughly $0.85/day, which lands closer to $25-30/mo.

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