How to automate utility billing in a month
Tariffs, readings and shared cost allocation: three steps that take you from a spreadsheet to invoices that generate themselves.
RSMovira
Why this is slow to begin with
In most portfolios utility billing is handmade: readings arrive by text message, tariffs live in one spreadsheet and shared costs in another. Every month the same work repeats.
Meter types first
Meter types are your own catalogue: cold water, hot water, electricity, gas, heating. Flag the automatic ones. Nobody should be typing those in.
- Give every type a unit (m³, kWh)
- Attach meters to specific rental units
- Invite tenants to the portal so they submit readings themselves
Then the tariffs
Each meter gets a tariff in €/unit. Consumption is calculated as end reading − start reading, so you never open a calculator.
And then the shared costs
Waste collection, stairwell electricity and upkeep are not metered. Pick an allocation basis:
- area: in proportion to square metres
- evenly: every unit pays the same
- occupants: by household size
- consumption: in proportion to measured use
The result
"Generate utility invoices" gives you a preview: you see every unit's invoice line by line before anything is created. Confirm, and the invoices are out.