Hello,

I’m looking at renting an apartment in a beautiful old building (built in the late 1800s), which unfortunately doesn’t have central heating/hot water. The apartment has an electric boiler for hot water (200 litres, I think), and each room has a space heater.

So far I’ve only lived in places where heating & hot water are included in the rent, and I’m concerned I may end up with huge electricity bills... I’m trying to get a rough idea of how much heating and hot water could end up costing (in my canton the most affordable electricity costs 0.17 (weekends and at night) to 0.26 (weekdays) per kWh, VAT included).

Anyone have experience with using basic electric heaters (no heat pump or anything centralised)? And/or an electric boiler?

If so, what's your electricity consumption like? How high are your electricity bills in the winter?

Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Ask the prospective landlord for the previous year’s bills.

Why would the landlord know the previous tenants' bills?

Tom

The electric company might tell you the previous bills..

When we moved last year, within the same village I contacted the electric company to say we were moving and they adjusted my quarterly bill based on the quarterly bill from the previous tenant in the new apartment.

So might work if you can't talk to the last tenant.. Guessing is difficult, me being scottish would likely go all year without turning a heater on

I live in such a building. We almost dont use the electric heaters: we don’t heat the bedrooms, and have a gas heater in the leaving room.

The boiler normally works only at night, when the electricity is cheaper.

We pay 150.-/month for electricity. Some neignvours who use the electric heaters pay up to 300.-/month.

... because sometimes is is the caretaker who reads the meter, not the electricity men, by agreement, and then the info is passed on through the landlord.