[mike31154]

I don't think a reputable plumber is going to fix it so you get free water, so that part of the discussion is moot. In my house, the PRV is plumbed in downstream of the water meter, quite a ways actually. Not sure if this is code, but it was done that way before I bought the house. This allows me to have full city pressure for my outdoor taps which is good for my irrigation set up, hand watering the garden & washing stuff. My PRV is adjustable & I've taken the liberty of tweaking the pressure somewhat higher downstream of it as well. A bit of a risk, but the old copper is holding up fine & I get 100 psi at my RO system, a bit more on good days. All the water is still metered. You could request that the plumber doing the work also move your PRV downstream of the water meter, provided it meets your local code requirements.