A landlord who makes you pay utilities without a written agreement breaks the State Sanitary Code and can be liable under Chapter 93A, even an LLC renting a single house, depending on the facts. But the Appeals Court held that unless the arrangement actually hurt you, you get only nominal damages and attorney’s fees, not your utility bills back. This is a published decision of the Appeals Court and binding statewide.
What happened
An LLC owned a single-family house and rented it to an employee of a tree service run by the LLC’s manager. For four years the tenant paid no rent. Later he paid weekly rent through payroll deductions, and from the start he paid the utilities, with nothing in writing. Lead paint was later found and removed. The tenants stopped paying rent, and the landlord brought a nonpayment eviction case in the Housing Court. The tenants counterclaimed. The judge awarded the landlord back rent, awarded the tenants damages for lead paint and for the utility arrangement, doubled the utility award under Chapter 93A, and let the tenants keep possession by depositing the balance.
What the court decided
In 133 West Main Street Realty, LLC v. Kimball, No. 24-P-245 (Mass. App. Ct. February 14, 2025), the court decided three issues.
The landlord was in trade or commerce. Chapter 93A bars unfair or deceptive acts in trade or commerce. G.L. c. 93A, § 2. A strictly private rental, such as an owner renting one unit of a two-family home they live in, may fall outside it. Billings v. Wilson, 397 Mass. 614 (1986). Here the court looked at the whole picture. No owner lived in the house. The managers ran other residential and commercial rentals. One manager paid bills and worked with the tenants to resolve issues. There had been earlier tenants. And the owner was an LLC. Together, those facts showed a rental business, even if the arrangement began as a favor.
Only nominal damages for the utility violation. The violation was the failure to put the utility agreement in writing. The tenants had agreed to pay utilities from day one, and the judge found no breach of quiet enjoyment. Following Poncz v. Loftin, 34 Mass. App. Ct. 909 (1993), and Youghal, LLC v. Entwistle, 484 Mass. 1019 (2020), the court held that only nominal damages were allowed. The trial award, about $9,500 for water and sewer bills doubled to about $19,000, was vacated. The finding of a 93A violation and the attorney’s fee award stood.
Interest on back rent. Under G.L. c. 239, § 8A, a tenant who owes a net balance keeps possession by paying the balance “together with interest and costs.” The judge left out interest. The court held the statute requires it. Here interest ran from the date the landlord started the case, because there was no finding of an earlier breach or demand date. See G.L. c. 231, § 6C.
The tenants also kept their lead paint award, which the landlord did not appeal, and could seek a share of their appeal fees.
What this means for you
If you pay utilities with no written agreement, your landlord is violating the Sanitary Code. That can matter in a Housing Court case. It can support a Chapter 93A counterclaim and an award of attorney’s fees, which matters when you need a lawyer.
But this case shows the limit. If you agreed to pay and the arrangement did not cost you anything extra, a court may not give you your utility payments back. Under Poncz, damages may be possible if the landlord failed to provide adequate heat, the arrangement hurt your use of the home, you objected during the tenancy, your rent plus utilities came to more than the fair rental value, or there was a meter problem. You have to prove one of these at trial.
The case also shows that a small landlord cannot always escape Chapter 93A by saying the rental was personal. Who owns the property, who manages it, and how the owner runs other rentals all count.
Finally, if you win the right to stay by paying a balance under § 8A, be ready to pay interest on top of it.
What to do now
- Check your lease for a written term saying you pay utilities. If there is none, keep your utility bills and payment records.
- If you object to paying utilities, say so in writing to your landlord and keep a copy.
- Gather evidence of heat problems, meter issues, or what similar homes rent for.
- If you face a nonpayment case, file an answer with your defenses and counterclaims on time.
- If the court sets a balance to keep your home, ask what interest and costs are included before the deadline.
If this is your situation, call Doubleday Law at (617) 575-2006 or tell us what happened. Housing Court deadlines are short.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
