If you're thinking about relocating from Long Island to Raleigh, North Carolina... (Clay: fit in, apartment complexes)

[slynn41072]

Originally Posted by alexei27

I believe LIPA's 0.21 or so per KwH is 2nd in the nation...behind Oahu which is $0.32 per KwH

I just checked my elecric bill, we are at 10.6 cents a kWh including taxes.

[dman72]

Originally Posted by Escape_From_NY

I got more creative. Desperation is the mother of creativity. I bought a cheap old motorhome on ebay for $2k, found a commercial storage yard where I could (ahem)"store" it for $50 a month, an then slowly, incrementally moved in. I convinced the property manager that it would be a good idea for all concerned, if I simply stayed there, kept an eye on things, and made sure the gate was locked up at night after the last of the landscapers came in. I added 2 more large vehicles to my menagerie, voluntarily upped my own rent to $100 a month(I was feeling guilty about only paying $50 a month with extra 2 vehicles). Got my own electric meter
and account, and personal mail addressed to the yard actually get delivered to "my" mailbox there. I use cellular for both phone and internet access.

You're like McGyver.

[Escape_From_NY]

Originally Posted by slynn41072

I agree with you.
We have way less traffic than on LI. What people in NC call traffic is laughable.
The best part is on the weekends in the summer you can actually drive around in no traffic at all. Try going out to the Hamptons on a weekend or out of NY at all. The only thing we did on LI is sit in traffic on the weekends unless we stayed local.

Electric is much cheaper outside of LI/NY. My electric bill is approx 160.00 a month for a 3400 sq ft home with central air running constantly in the summer set at 70. My monthly gas bill is 122.00 a month(includes heating).

I think you know exactly what you are talking about.

Thank you. Yeah, I can't imagine anyone trying to argue *anything* is cheaper on LI than in the Carolinas(except maybe LI clams). There was a website(I can't remember the name/URL right now) where you could plug in your zip code, and the zip code of your intended relocation destination, and get a readout of the cost-of-living differences between the two, and mine showed something like a 36% reduction compared to LI.

And the "traffic"? Now granted it was summer, so maybe that's why it was so light, but I found out that non-rush hour meant you'd be sharing the highway with maybe 2 or 3 cars (as far as the eye could see in both directions). "Rush"-hour turned out to mean you'd have to share the highway with 5 additional cars and one semi. I had left extra early in the morning from the hotel for the 20 mile drive to Greenville-Spartanburg airport, worried what the traffic would be like at 7am - I wound up getting there 3 hours early, and that's with missing my exit due to daydreaming and needing to drive past GSP and turnaround. In contrast, it took me FOUR HOURS to drive the 70 miles to Newark Int airport from Suffolk County LI. I don't know about the Charlotte, NC area, but Upstate SC , at least in the summer, was wide open.

I might try flying in to Charlotte next time, and simply driving the 90 miles
to the Spartanburg area - shouldn't take more than 90 minutes. This way, I can avoid that miserable trip to Newark, take the train to LGA instead and just leave my car at home. Newark RAPES you for parking fees! $50
for 3 days in the "economy" lot! Add the tolls, time and aggravation, and as nice as and convenient as GSP is, the only cheap flights to it are from Newark. But there are cheap flights from LGA to CLT, so I'm definitely going to consider going that route next time.

[Just Peachy]

I moved from LI to NC about 2 years ago and I was back home in 14 months due to psycho neighbors. But I will be the first to agree that the grass is not always greenier on the other side. But where I lived in NC..Mooresville..Lake Norman Area...the schools were top notch and better then any schools I saw on LI! But then again..the Lake Norman Schools are some of the best in NC!

[Escape_From_NY]

Originally Posted by alexei27

I believe LIPA's 0.21 or so per KwH is 2nd in the nation...behind Oahu which is $0.32 per KwH

Here's a snippet of my last LIPA bill:

DELIVERY & SYSTEM CHARGES
1790KWH @ $ .0863
POWER SUPPLY CHARGES
1473 KWH @ $ .10931

So if I add .0863 and .1093, I come up with about 19.6 cents per kwh plus tax(es). Not exactly a bargain, and it's about to go up again. What happens when $4-5 gallon diesel returns?

[Rachael84]

Originally Posted by tomonlineli

If you are upper class than LI is great for you and if you are lower class than what state is better than NY for the welfare programs? However, the middle class has no place on LI.

My fiance and I make around 6000 a month after taxes (in our 20s, so our teacher salaries will go up. I also pay city tax, so salary will go up once I move back to the island) and we consider ourselves middle class on Long Island. We aren't being forced out? There's gotta be some middle class people who are still able to stay on the island.

[slynn41072]

Originally Posted by Rachael84

My fiance and I make around 6000 a month after taxes (in our 20s, so our teacher salaries will go up) and we consider ourselves middle class on Long Island. We aren't being forced out? There's gotta be some middle class people who are still able to stay on the island.

Do you have kids? Pay daycare? Own a home?
I would add a couple of kids to the mix and see how far the 6000.00 a month works for you.

[Rachael84]

Originally Posted by slynn41072

Do you have kids? Pay daycare? Own a home?
I would add a couple of kids to the mix and see how far the 6000.00 a month works for you.

We just bought a house in Levittown. It's in contract.

We aren't going to pay for daycare because I'm going on maternity leave for a few years to raise them. Thinking about opening up a daycare for a few kids while I raise my own. I'm a teacher, so it might make myself more marketable. Cheaper than daycare centers too.

[TheTruth08]

I don't know about Raleigh. But after College I plan on giving the south a shot. Unless the North is the new hot spot by then.

[BigMike50]

Originally Posted by Rachael84

We just bought a house in Levittown. It's in contract.

We aren't going to pay for daycare because I'm going on maternity leave for a few years to raise them. Thinking about opening up a daycare for a few kids while I raise my own. I'm a teacher, so it might make myself more marketable. Cheaper than daycare centers too.

If you're going on maternity leave for a few years, won't that lower your monthly income? Just saying