In a house, the tenants are usually responsible for arranging, as well as paying for garbage hauling . You are responsible for calling the public utility companies to arrange for any individually metered utility service. Call the public utility companies at least one month prior to your move-in date to make an appointment to start service on the first day of your lease. A tenant may sue the landlord for damages if the landlord violates any provisions of this law. The amount of the claim could be increased to three times the amount of the utility bills if the landlord's violation was knowing or intentional.
Some landlords have master-metered water or heat for which they pay.
If the heat is paid by the landlord, speak with current tenants before you sign the lease to be certain that heat is sufficient. Also inquire about the location of the heat controls. If the public utility company posts a notice at the premises stating that utility service will be terminated as a result of the landlord's non-payment, any tenant or group of tenants in the building may pay the bill to prevent termination of service and then deduct from their rent the amount paid to the public utility company . As an alternative, a tenant could promise to pay future utility bills and then deduct those costs from the rent. The public utility company is required by state law to post notice of the landlord's non-payment no less than 10 days before service will be terminated.