Moving into an apartment - Water, power, internet, insurance?

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AidanS

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Ultimate Geek
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#233502 18-Apr-2018 17:42

Hi all,

Young millennial here moving out of home into a CBD apartment in Auckland.

Just wondering what the "norm" is for the expenses of an apartment like water, power, internet, etc?

Is it normal to get your water and power bill from the landlord and then you arrange your own internet connection?

How about insurance, should I get any (I see AMI advertising "renters insurance", etc)?

Thanks for your input!

Aredwood

3885 posts

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#1998943 18-Apr-2018 20:04

Check what the situation is for each apartment. As some run private networks for water, power, internet, gas etc. And force you to buy from just 1 or 2 companies that charge far above market rates.

While others have things like unlimited hot water included in the body corporate fees. Which in your case means included in the rent. A secondary bonus is sometimes those central hot water pipes are not insulated properly. Which means free heating in winter. (and stinking hot heat during summer).

Definitely get contents insurance. Partly to give you public liability cover. Just in case you accidentally cause a fire or flood, and do major damage to the entire building.

Journeyman

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#1999025 18-Apr-2018 23:52

Contact the body corp re insurance. They usually have some form of insurance on the dwelling but not the contents (IIRC, IANAL). Check with the body corporate what they cover.

Water and power bill doesn't necessarily come from the landlord. In fact, in my experience, it never has. It comes from the supplier. As Aredwood said, sometimes the apartment buys power from a private provider. Ask your landlord if this is the case.

MurrayM

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#1999112 19-Apr-2018 09:12

Journeyman:

Water and power bill doesn't necessarily come from the landlord. In fact, in my experience, it never has. It comes from the supplier.

I once rented a house that had been split into two rentable areas (upstairs and downstairs) and the landlord arranged the power for the entire house and then charged both sections of the house for the power that they used. There was a meter that recorded one section's usage and the other section just paid the difference. I had no choice but to go with the power company that the landlord had decided on. Similiarly the water was included in the rent (no attempt to try and separate it out).