Founder MeterEase blog
Why I built MeterEase
I’m Drew Starbuck, an estate planning attorney with Williams Starbuck in Las Vegas. I built MeterEase because I kept hearing the same complaint from clients, and the software they tried didn’t fix it.
The complaint I kept hearing
Many of my clients own rental properties, and one complaint came up again and again: every month, they had to split the utility bills across their tenants by hand.
The routine looks like this. A master bill comes in for the whole building. They work out each unit’s share. They double-check the math, because a mistake means an awkward conversation or money left on the table. Then they send each tenant a number and hope nobody pushes back.
None of that is hard. It is just tedious, it comes back every month, and it is easy to get slightly wrong. The time adds up.
What they tried
The software they tried wanted them to pay for a whole property-management suite just to split their utility bills. To do one monthly job, they were being asked to pay for a much bigger system.
That seemed backwards to me. They didn’t need a new way to run their business. They needed one recurring task done well.
One job, done well
So I built MeterEase to do that one job. Here is what it does today:
- Reads the bill. You upload the master bill PDF.
- Applies your method. Square footage, occupants, bedrooms, fixed percentages, or a blend, plus the vacancy rule you choose.
- Shows the math. Each tenant gets an email with their share, how it was calculated, and the source bill attached.
- Waits for you. You check the numbers before anything goes out.
And here is what it deliberately doesn’t do. It doesn’t collect rent or tenant payments. It isn’t a utility. It doesn’t screen tenants or try to become your property-management system. It doesn’t decide your billing method or write your lease, and it isn’t legal advice. You choose the method and own the lease terms. MeterEase does the math and the delivery.
Why “show the math” matters
When a tenant can see their unit’s square footage, the building total and the arithmetic, along with the actual bill, the conversation is about facts, not trust. My clients described the worry as much as the work: hoping nobody would push back. Putting the math in every email is the simplest way I know to take that worry away.
Why the price is what it is
If the problem is that people were paying for a whole suite to do one job, the answer can’t be another expensive suite. MeterEase starts at $14 a month for one property with up to four units. Larger plans are on the pricing page, and signup is self-serve.
What I hope it gives you
The goal is simple: give landlords that time back. The monthly bill comes in, you upload it, check the shares, and send.
If you want to see the math before you sign up, try the free RUBS calculator, the move-out proration calculator, or the bill-back letter generator. If you want the rules in your state, start with our state guides. And if you have a question or an idea, email us at [email protected].
— Drew Starbuck, Founder, MeterEase
Split the bill and email every tenant in minutes
MeterEase reads the master bill PDF, applies your method and vacancy rule, and emails each tenant their share with the math shown and the source bill attached, after you check the numbers. Plans start at $14/month.