" If I put a laundry in each apartment, I think you would have all your tenants friends doing laundry."

Not until the tenant sees their HUGE electric bill.

I believe that Jersey City changed the law a few years back that requires dryer vents go directly outside rather than in a shared chimney vent. This change has had a bigger impact on the larger towers obviously since it was much easier to have common ventilation.

Personally, in building w/d has almost no value. Drop off service is too cheap to make a coin operated building w/d worth the time and money. In unit w/d is different of course in that the utility fees are paid directly by the tenant in most cases and there isn't any problem with leaving laundry in the dry until you want to wear it.

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I have a small electric dryer which at some point is going over to gas.

You need a PSE&G inspection for a new meter. The Building Department inspects the gas lines from the meter to the dryer.

Do a little math before deciding which way to go. Gas is running less than $0.75 per therm. Electricity is running about $0.16 to $0.18 per kWh for residential. If it is on a commercial (common area) meter, you could get hit with electric charges up to $0.30 per kWh after those wicked 'summer demand charges' are factored in during the summer months. If the machine is going to get a fairly heavy use you will likely want to spend the money to get the gas lines run. It will be cheaper in the long run.

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The machine runs probably 6-7 hours per days sometimes. No leaks (I checked). I have been emptying the coin bin monthly now. The other buildings I do that 3 or 4 times a year at best.

Anyone running electric dryers ?

or are you running a gas line to the where the service area for the washer and dryer will be ?

if a gas line is run , does it need PSE&G inspection ?

I think our ~$1200 stacking front load LG's are a little over 5 years old, no problems so far. We had a Frigidaire before that was utter crap, and universally so. There should have been a class action.

Just out of curiosity - how much more rent can you charge if you had washer/dryer in unit?

Just to add my experience here - I had a set of Bosch front loading washer and dryer for my own apartment. When we were buying, we decided to go mid-range and chose the bosch, and I purchased 5-yr extended warranty for both. So when 5 years and 3 months rolled around, the washer broke. I had a technician came out to take a look, and the repair itself would have cost $400 (whereas a new washer would be around $700).

If I had the space, I would purchase the top loading Speed Queen - yes, they're more expensive, but all the reviews I read are so good (and there's a way to "trick" the machine to add more water). But since I have limited space (24" width space), I couldn't!!!

be warned - don't get Bosch - I think their quality really went down hill in recent years (or perhaps I just got a dud!)

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That seems impossible! My 3 family with 6 residents uses about that in total. It would be worth investing in inline meters to actually know.

User1111, compelling story. You could have used the protections I described below.

When I moved into my unit 8 years ago, the previous tenant left a broken washer behind. I was able to convince my landlord to allow me to replace the washer and add a dryer. My unit and the unit across from me are the only two in our 8 unit building that have provisions for washers/dryers. After doing a bunch of research, i wouldn't touch the all-in-one stacked units with a 10ft pole, they can be cheaper, yes ($700-$1200) but they can be notorious for failures, and they just don't have the volume to service a home with more than one, maybe two people without running the thing constantly. I opted for a separate washer and dryer (Maytag) that are designed to be stacked. The washer is a HE front loader and the dryer is gas and are about twice the volume as an all-in-one with about the same footprint. Total cost of purchase was $1300 including tax from Home Depot. This is the key to saving money in the long run. I can run one load a week for both myself and my wife, and our utility bill barely reflects that we even have a washer/dryer. Something to think about.

As a landlord I prefer laundry in a common place that can be accessed easily, not in a locked unit. I had a bad experience with laundry in the unit. The tenant did a load of laundry and left the apt and the machine flooded and I was not around so therefore no one had access to the unit. Long story short the apt was ruined and also the apt below.

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Downtown this is true. Heights and JSQ area not so much. In fact it is pretty rare to find a mid priced apartment with laundry in it. Even dishwashers are still fairly rare (I think I was one of the few landlords to include on 15+ years ago).

Whom I rent to are usually looking for space because they are sharing with roommates (younger people) or have just started having kids. Size matters more and a coin-op laundry is acceptable. The apartments in the Heights are generally larger than what you can get in Downtown and at 1/2 the price.

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Top loaders run about $850 to $1,000 the last time I checked. A commercial front loader will run closer to $2k. However, based on some calcs I did (a long time ago) it would pay for itself in something around 2 years due to the lower water usage. Again... my laundry rooms get used A LOT sometimes. A top loader under heavy use will add about $300 to $400 per billing quarter on my water/sewer bill.

The Federal regulations to reduce water consumption really reduced the cleaning ability of top loaders. Top loaders are more reliable and cheaper up front, but given how much we are dinged in sewer and the fact that top loaders don't clean as well now.. might as well go with a front.

The one issue that happens with my front loader is I get tenants who use some hippy-dippy brand of detergent and also put way too much in the machine. I had to run about 4 cycles with the thing empty to clear out all the detergent that was built up.

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Did you see the "$1600 in the Heights" part? Isn't that different from $3k+ anywhere? I can understand different expectation in new construction than 100 yo rowhouses.

Unless it's manhattan, why would anyone rent a place w/o a washer/dryer in the unit? Even in dtjc...washers and dryers in units are common...

However, we are probably looking at diff types of buildings...

We wouldn't rent a place without a W/D in unit. It's well worth the rent increase.

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Yeah, after I bought this 3U+ studio and before I gradually lost the large families, the water bill was in that territory with no laundry! I checked for leaks but it was lots of showers, baths and dishes.

Thanks for all the thoughtful advice. I always want to make my places nice to attract the best trouble free tenants, and it's generally worked. But this might be premature for the Heights. What would a set of coin-ops run? Last I check for top load it was around $800 per appliance.

When I put my own laundry on the 2nd fl I essentially built a shower base with a curb and drain, and installed a valve that cut off the water unless the washer was actually on. It also has a floor sensor shutoff. I NEVER wanted to see water running down the stairs!

I only have one apartment (besides my own) that has its own laundry. The apartment that has it is in a small 2 family. My advice is as follows:

Make sure you have it in a room with a sealed floor and a drain. A busted hose or overflow can cause mega amounts of damage.

I like coin-op machines in apartments where there are 3 or more units. I tend to get younger people / multiple roommate situations. If I put a laundry in each apartment, I think you would have all your tenants friends doing laundry. After the PVSC raised sewage rates to the moon, you can easily hit a $1,200 a quarter bill if you have out of control laundry usage. I would reverse this policy if I could put each apartment on its own water meter. Then I wouldn't care. With the coin machines, you at least get extra $$$ to cover the usage. Right now I have a tenant with a business that requires him to use the laundry a lot. My water/sewer bill tripled last quarter. But so did my revenue from the laundry machines.

If you decide to go with a coin-op machine, PM me and I will send you a link to a place where you can buy the good ones (front loading commercial Speed Queen brand).

Very few apartments offer laundry in the units (except for the higher end places). For a moderate priced apartment, I think you are better off with coin-op machines.

we have the stacked one in our apartment. we love it. weekly when we do laundry we say how much we love it. we moved from astoria and had to schlep laundry to a laundromat two blocks away so this was a huge change for us. if you're going from no washer/dryer to having one, having any size will be great, and i am still able to do sets of sheets in it or large blankets without a problem of it fitting. also, we've been here for two years and we've had no problems with it. no maintenance issues or water issues.

Hey all. I'm trying to decide if it's worth putting W/D in a 1000 sq ft apt in the Heights that will rent for at least $1600, or just put in a common laundry for the 4 units in the basement as I've been planning. Maybe it's more appropriate for a far more expensive apt. Demo revealed a drainpipe where I thought I'd have to add one to do it, so now it's do it while it's easy or kick the can down the road.

Pros in unit: higher rent from tenants that value it.

Cons in unit: purchasing appliances, more appliances to maintain, water damage possibilities, have to recover expense in rent rather than coin op machines.

I only have room to stack. Anyone happy with those little unitized top loading stackers? Seems they would be more dependable than finicky & expensive front loading stackers. Or are they just too small?

All comments welcome. (except the personal ones like "cheapass landlord!!"