submeter
utility submeter

Sherafat said it would cost about $2,000 per tenant for the submeter and the necessary software.

The solution, Mr. Padian said, is to install a submeter in each apartment.

Sometimes, as a negotiating tool, a tenant will hire a consultant to independently survey the estimated electricity use within an office without a submeter.

On average a water, gas or electric submeter costs about $500 to install, he said, with town house and garden-apartment complexes less costly than high-rise buildings.