Utility Bill Audits: Reducing Energy Costs for Condos, Co-ops, and Rental Buildings

If you’re not conducting careful reviews of your building’s utility bills, you may be overpaying your utility company. FirstService Residential helps condo and co-op boards and building owners secure valuable refunds or credits for overpaying their utility bills though our dedicated energy advisory affiliate FirstService Energy.
 
Our experts use state-of-the-art data analysis tools to review electric, gas, steam, and oil bills for errors and anomalies. This includes years of past invoices to identify clerical errors, improper classifications, erroneous or defective meter readings, and other variables that can lead to overcharges. When these errors go unnoticed, cumulative overpayments can balloon well into the six-figures.
 

Our utility audits have secured substantial refunds for our clients.

You may worry that you don’t have the resources to collect a large refund from a utility company, nor the bandwidth to review years of complex statements and invoices. Our experienced data analysts have helped hundreds of boards and owners recoup excess payments from local utility companies – just one example of the value we bring to our clients.
 

$158,000 recovered | Utility bill overcharges

When a 35-unit Manhattan condo noticed skyrocketing utility bills, they contacted FirstService Energy to begin a comprehensive review of their building’s energy usage. The auditing team examined two years of natural gas invoices using state-of-the-art analysis and variance detection tools. They discovered that the utility company had been charging the building incorrectly. FirstService Energy’s client advocates worked with the utility company to correct the issue and recovered $158,000 in refunds for our client.

 
 

$33,000 recovered | Utility bill overcharges
A 270-unit Manhattan condo was burdened by significant increases in their utility bill, unaware that their building’s use-type was incorrectly classified. FirstService Energy discovered the error and worked with the utility company to quickly secure a refund for overpayment. The building received $33,000 which could then be applied to ongoing capital projects. 

 

FirstService Energy helps our clients significantly enhance their building’s energy efficiency by recommending strategies to reduce energy consumption, costs, and emissions.

Our energy experts consider a multitude of practical conservation measures to tailor the best solution for your property. In addition to providing comprehensive data analysis and utility bill auditing services, FirstService Energy’s personalized advisory services simplify carbon emissions reduction, local law compliance, incentive and rebate capitalization, and energy procurement.
 
To learn more about our personalized energy solutions, contact our experts today at [email protected]. You can also learn more about our unrivaled energy advisory services here.

 
FirstService Energy is a NYSERDA Multifamily Performance Partner, a member of the 2024 NYSERDA Empire Building Challenge Cohort, a member of the NYC Mayor’s Carbon Challenge, and a participant in the US Department of Energy and HUD’s Better Buildings Challenge.