Utility bills: what is included in them, what are the costs and services

Question from Mark Dezhurov:

Good day, Nikolay! My name is Mark. I would like to address you and all your readers with a question. I want to start a business in the service sector, but I don’t know what services can be provided to the population or organizations to make it profitable. Moreover, you can consider services for the city, on the Internet, at home, etc. Thank you!

Answer from Nikolay Schmidt (Author of the site How to Earn Money.ru):

Hi Mark!

The question is relevant not only for you, because I have been asked it more than once. Below in the answer I will express my personal opinion, and readers will add if they wish.

Important! I’ll say right away that I think it’s right to provide the services that you yourself understand. If you can provide the service yourself, then it is easier for you to organize a business and you can start with a minimum of investment without initial staff. Business in services is not a simple buy and sell; service, professionalism, quality, etc. are important here. Therefore, without interest, without love for the business and understanding of the market, it is difficult to start making money on services. I advise you to listen to your heart and come up with an idea yourself, and below I will list what services can be provided so that I can try to give you at least some idea.

Service delivery methodology

General transcript

It includes several important parts - the current tariff, the amount of resources that were spent on individual and general needs, and the amount of payment.

The availability of benefits for the consumer is also indicated in the decoding. At the end the total amount is displayed. Indicators for calculating payments for utility services are taken from metering devices. If there are none, the regulated average monthly consumption standards are taken into account.

Meter readings and average monthly consumption rates must be indicated in the background information of the receipt. Important information is also the amount of resource consumption throughout the house.

Who is it for?

Subscription legal services cover a wide range of clients. And not only those organizations that do not have a department (with a lawyer on staff), but also those that have created and operate a legal service.

Benefit of legal entities

• Reducing costs by eliminating the payment of salaries for an in-house lawyer
• Reducing income tax by including service costs in expenses
• Elimination of thoughtless increases in staffing levels
• Gaining experience of specialists practicing in different business sectors
• Communication with specialists involved in business and understanding business needs
• Preservation of trade secrets due to the obligations voluntarily accepted by our company and the reputation accumulated over the years
• The advantage of the company in the service Subscription services for legal entities is the combination of scientific activities by its employees, rich experience in the continuous provision of services and constant judicial practice

You may be interested in more detailed information about the company's internal documents

What does it mean to pay for housing and utilities?

In payment for existing residential premises, there are many options for names: rent, maintenance, payment for all housing services, the rate of management organizations. The cost of major repairs and full maintenance of the premises includes various services and a variety of works for the maintenance of public property of an apartment building.

The existing non-residential premises of the entire apartment building are calculated in a similar amount. Quite often, management organizations inflate payments for the maintenance of non-residential areas, as well as general house needs, justifying themselves by the fact that these premises are visited by a large number of people. The Housing Code of the Russian Federation considers these actions unlawful and a direct violation of the entire current law of the Russian Federation.

Housing utilities refer to activities aimed at creating the most comfortable living conditions for residents of apartment buildings. All consumers are required to know exactly what is included in the list of utility services provided and what satisfies their general household needs.

According to the requirements introduced in 2012, the following have the right to use the provided utilities:

• all residents of the high-rise building and their families;
• persons who received their housing from cooperative organizations;
• all tenants of residential premises;
• tenants renting a room or apartment.

The very concept of these “utilities” has the following general house needs:

• round-the-clock supply of cold water through the central as well as intra-house network. The main requirements are quality, as well as sufficient volume for people's lives;
• round-the-clock supply of hot water through centralized networks to all rooms of the house;
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• wastewater disposal. This service is provided through centralized networks around the clock and in-house systems. Also an addition to the service is the treatment of waste water and sewage. Wastewater disposal and all sewage systems must be available in most of the rooms of the entire house;
• the electricity supply must provide the residents of the house around the clock in the amount required for them;
• gas is delivered to apartments around the clock. This item also includes the sale of gas cylinders;
• heating. Certain heating systems supply heating to all apartments and non-residential areas in order to constantly maintain the temperature.

The list of all utilities directly depends on the actual amenities of a particular apartment building. In the case where the room does not have a sewerage system, it should not be counted as a service already provided.

Payment for living quarters and utilities has some items that complement general house needs:

• lighting;
• cleaning and ensuring sanitation in all public areas (entrance, stairs) and the land adjacent to the house;
• cleaning waste sites, removing wastewater and generated waste;
• Implementation of landscaping of areas that are part of the house;
• expenses for current, overhaul and full maintenance of the building;
• preparing a high-rise building for seasonal use (heating, insulation);
• costs involving the maintenance of public home property;
• Payments also include inspection of all premises and all related activities.
• Among other things, the disposal of wastewater occupies a separate place in its importance:
• drainage, as well as collection of wastewater (rainwater, collector, sewer network, etc.);
• wastewater treatment using various existing methods.

Recently, strict monitoring of wastewater disposal cost calculations has been carried out. Wastewater treatment using various methods is provided in houses of any type. In multi-storey buildings, wastewater is removed continuously and properly.

Prices for subscription legal services

The management of legal entities, as well as individual entrepreneurs, when choosing a company to provide services, are primarily interested in how much it will cost them.

It should be noted here that in Moscow and the Moscow region legal support is offered by numerous companies, legal centers, bureaus, lawyers and attorneys engaged in private practice. And prices for services are formed based on the volume of services ordered.

Competition in the market for legal support services in the capital today is very high, which is why various service options are offered. Therefore, customers can choose both services for legal entities with a predetermined monthly payment, and services without a monthly fee, when payment is made on an hourly basis. Another factor that significantly influences the cost of service is the experience, qualifications and authority of legal specialists offering their services.

Our firm, providing full legal support, offers the most attractive prices based on the price-quality criterion. Our tariffs are fully justified, which can be confirmed by legal entities who contact our company.

About rent

Currently, housing is not allocated to every young family or promising specialist.
Therefore, the question of what is included in utilities when renting is increasingly being asked. In a standard situation, if an agreement is concluded between the owner and the guest, it is stipulated that the latter will pay all invoices received. Further, the situation will be considered from the position that interaction takes place in the legal field. In other words, an agreement was concluded and the relevant authorities were informed about it. In this case, the tenant can demand that the utility services fulfill their obligations, which they must fulfill, in full. That is, if there is a break in heating in winter, while the “tariff” interaction scheme is in effect, a person has every right to contact the housing and communal services department to demand compensation. You can use the concluded agreement to confirm your rights. Otherwise, housing and communal services employees may ask on what basis he requires this. And even call the police, who will record the conduct of unregistered business activity - renting out property - with all the ensuing consequences. To avoid such moments, in the absence of contracts, you can agree with the owner that utilities are included in the rent, and he independently provides and pays for them.

Wide range of options for servicing legal entities

We understand that each legal entity has different capabilities and interests, and therefore we offer the following options, one of which is sure to be suitable, including:

• option to adjust the types of services provided, which are included in the cost of servicing legal entities, taking into account the nuances of the customer’s business;
• option to choose the most appropriate form of legal support;
• the ability to order comprehensive services for legal entities (carried out on the basis of a monthly subscription fee);
• support with an hourly rate (to control concluded contracts and other transactions, as a rule, this type of service is ordered by companies that have a small volume of work);
• provision of services at a fixed price (for example, when you need to ensure the completion of one task that is quite difficult from a legal point of view).

Service sector in the Russian Federation

The idea of ​​organizing a service business is not new. But during periods of crisis, there is an increase in the demand for some of them. For example, agencies that provide employment will remain invariably popular in the face of massive staff reductions. At the same time, the service business in Russia is constantly developing precisely because of the easy start, since many simply do not have enough start-up capital to develop other areas. In addition, unlike goods, which are often characterized by high competition and changing demand, it is possible to provide services that will always be in demand.

Video about organizing a business in the service sector:

Why us

Having worked in this market segment for several years, we provide competent legal support to various categories of clients. Our obvious advantages are:

• highly qualified professionals working in the company;
• a large number of customers working with us on an ongoing basis;
• individual approach to solving each customer’s problem;
• timely and qualified support at any site of work;
• specialization in legal support and consulting;
• impeccable reputation and extremely positive feedback from our clients.

Housing and communal services (HCS)

If everything is clear with housing and communal services, then many still have one more question: housing and communal services - what is it?

Housing and communal services are a full range of activities aimed at maintaining and operating housing.

In addition to housing and communal services for the supply of water, electricity, gas and heat, housing and communal services also include repairs of buildings and structures, waste collection and removal, concierge services, maintenance of elevators in apartment buildings and much more.

Payment for these services is made monthly and is reflected in receipts. The services provided may vary depending on what exactly was specified in the agreement with the utility provider.

Below is a list of what may be included in housing and communal services payments:

• maintaining housing in a comfortable and safe condition for living, responsibilities for repairs: major, unscheduled and routine;
• waste removal: waste, garbage chute;
• 24-hour security and guarded parking;
• cleaning elevators, entrances, adjacent and common areas;
• concierge services, etc.

Simply put, what is public utilities ?

This is the entire collection of various enterprises and services serving the population. It includes housing and communal services, ventilation, low-current networks, fire safety, elevator facilities, sanitary and epidemiological treatment of premises, landscaping and much more.

Is it possible to refuse certain types of services?

Constantly growing tariffs for utility services have added urgency to the issue of the possibility of abandoning some utility services. How realistic is this in principle?

You can refuse utility services by submitting an application to the management company (MC, HOA, housing office, housing complex, etc.). Another thing is that it is impossible to refuse all services at once.

Some utilities cannot be excluded purely for technical reasons. For example, it will not be possible to refuse heating, since heat is supplied through a common system.

You can refuse such services as:

1. Cable TV. If your apartment has a personal satellite dish, you can contact the television company with a request to seal the cable access and get rid of unnecessary expenses.
2. Radio. If the radio point is not used, you can contact the DEZ and write an application to refuse this service.
3. Intercom. If the apartment does not have an intercom installed, then there is no need to pay for it. By writing an application, you can exclude the payment for the intercom from your overall utility bill.

Avoiding certain types of utilities can be controversial. So every tenant is required to pay for the elevator and garbage chute, since they belong to common areas .

But it's another matter if they are faulty. In this case, it is necessary to file a complaint with the HOA or management company, and if this does not help, then go to court with photographs of the non-functioning elevator and garbage chute and other evidence.

You can even request a recalculation of payment for services that, in theory, were not provided.

In order to pay for utilities according to the quantity consumed, and not based on accepted standards, it is desirable to install an individual meter. This will allow you to control the process of resource consumption and not overpay for services not received.

In some cases, the process of abandoning utility services can be quite complicated, which is understandable, because no resource supplying organization is interested in losing customers.

But you need to keep in mind that in the issue of refusing unnecessary housing and communal services, the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights” . And if there is a conflict with the management organization, you can safely go to court, provided you substantiate your claims.