Moving to Huntsville Decatur area (Madison, Hartselle: apartments, rentals, insurance)

[white jeep]

I have recently accepted an engineering job in Decatur and am looking into moving there or Huntsville, I was wondering about how much utilities and rent runs for a small house a month with two/three bedrooms in Huntsville or Decatur and which city would be better to live in? Apartments are out of the question, I have a black lab and she cant stay in an apartment. Any help would be appreciated.

[thebigr]

I am also moving to the Huntsville area with pets. Finding a house with pets is not easy. We did find one but had to leave a large deposit. Did not look in the Huntsville area as we wanted to live in Tn. Ended finding a house 500 ft. south of tn. line.

I believe a lot of landlords had bad experiances with tenants with pets. Not sure the amount of rentals available in Huntsville but did not find to many in Fayettville Tn area. Just keep trying, and present your self well. We have 2 Rottweilers so 1 lab should be easier.
Good luck and you will like the area. We will be there Oct 6.

[Southlander]

white jeep,
I'm sorry that I can't tell you about rents but you can check the classified ads at DECATUR DAILY online: News from the Tennessee Valley for Decatur and al.com - Everything Alabama for Huntsville. Don't know about utilities, either, but do know they tend to be among the lowest in the U.S. thanks to TVA and municipal-type (not private) distributors.
Decatur will probably be a little cheaper than Huntsville or Madison because it's a smaller city and there's less demand.
Much good luck to you!

[dbkeel1]

Try this for local info: Tennessee Valley BRAC: Relocation information: Housing, Education, Quality of Life, Huntsville, BRAC, Redstone, Tennessee Valley, Madison County, Alabama, AMCOM, MDA, SMDC. It is for BRAC people and has a lot of good info.

We live in a smallish home, have kids running in and out during the 100 degree heat and had utility bills (trash, sewer, water, power on one bill) of about $230/month. We used to spend nearly that for water alone in TX...

[Southlander]

Another helpful site:
Welcome to Decatur-Morgan County, Alabama: Great Schools, High Quality of Life and Low Cost of Living in Decatur, Alabama, Hartselle, Alabama and more

[NicoleC]

I have a 2150 square foot home but I'm an energy miser. My worst electric bill (Joe Wheeler) in all those 100F+ days was $130. (However, my next door neighbor has a house 1/3 smaller than mine and her bill was ~$250.) Winter electric bill is around $30 (lights, heat pump).

I have a natural gas heat pump; in the winter my worst bill probably won't top $100 -- when we had that freak cold snap this spring it was $50. (Hartselle Utilities) Summer bill with cooking and gas hot water is $10.

Water (Morgan County) is about $15. Trash $10; I have no sewer.

Rent in Decatur will probably be significantly cheaper, but you'll spend time and money driving into work every day.

[Keeper]

I can't tell you about the rent but utilites will vary depending on the time of year and what type of heating there is in the house. My electric runs 150.00 during the summer but in the 60s during the winter, with gas log fireplace, gas runs in the 50s. Be sure you get renter's insurance too.