Cost of living... (transplants, sales, real estate)

[rode2nowhere]

Hi,
We are considering moving to the area, Hemlock Farms in particular, from long island NY. For any transplants out there..Other than housing costs, how would you compare the cost of living on things like gas/electric/oil..car insurance, things like that. I assume things like cable/phone/internet are about the same as here. Any other info you can think of that might be helpful.
Also, what do you like/don't like about living in the area?
Thanks in advance for any info

[Mr Yuk]

Groceries are cheaper in NEPA than in most bigger areas....food is cheaper here than in NY, NJ, Philly, DC, etc.

[Jay68442]

I moved from Long Island a little over 5 years ago. For the most part everything is cheaper.
car insurance is 50% less
gas for your car .20 - .30 cents less a gl. on avg.
no sales tax on clothing
sales tax on goods is 6%
gas for the home waaaaay less then lipa
cable is pretty close
school taxes, 1/2 - 1/3 of what we paid on LI.

[J5K5LY]

I lived in NEPA for about 11 yrs. Moved back to LI. Cost of living is much less in Pa except if you have electric heat. The winters are harsh and you really need a good wood stove or something similar. The electic heat (which for some reason most houses have) will kill you! Now, even though everything seems cheaper in Pa, you will not make the money you do on LI. So, it's all relative. Same old.

[rode2nowhere]

Thanks for the responses. Happy to hear groceries are cheaper...i have 2 preteens who eat me out of house and home
And I like the no sales tax on clothes and the car insurance too.
We plan on renting, at least to start.
Definatly want a wood burning stove or fireplace if at all possible...financially and because I really like them
The winters do scare me a little...namely dark, icy, steep, twisting mountain roads and lots and lots of snow, but I think I can handle it/get used to it.
I know the payscale is much lower as well. If my husband cant find anything suitable to start he will most likely be working four 10 hr days at his current job in the bronx, which is about an hour and a half drive on a good day, but he could always stay at his parents house on LI a night or 2 a week if he had to...So we are still working it out. If he could handle that even for a year or two it would be very helpful..And I'm a bank teller, and the payscale really isn't that much less there for that.
JK5- how are you liking LI now that your back?
and Jay- do you think you made the right choice moving from LI to PA?
I'm in Elmont, so its not like I'm moving from the North Shore or some really nice part of LI to PA. I like the idea of some more space and less people and some nature, and I live lakes and my husband and son love to fish...I really think this could be a good move for my family. Plus my brother in law and his family are up there already, so we wouldnt be alone.

[thecoalman]

Originally Posted by J5K5LY

The electic heat (which for some reason most houses have) will kill you!

Electric rates are all over the place in different parts of the country but I believe the electric in LI is twice the cost? Even with the colder weather here you are not going to make up the difference.

Electric heat is fairly common but I don't think it's the most used. More likely either oil and natural gas. Houses built in the lat 60's and early 70's would of had this heat installed because the electric company was pushing it with the promise of dirt cheap electric with the nuclear plant, those cheap rates never really materialized. You also have Agnes around the same time where many people had to replace their furnace, electric is cheap and easy to install so it went into a lot of homes effected by the flood.

Right now your best bet is natural gas IF you're n town and can get it piped right into your home. If you don't mind a little work coal is and always be the cheapest. It's even cheaper than wood if you pay market value and certainly a whole lot easier.

[thecoalman]

Originally Posted by rode2nowhere

Definatly want a wood burning stove or fireplace if at all possible...financially and because I really like them

Look at coal as well. You don't quite get that same ambiance but for heating it's superior in every way with the exception of wood having less ash.

[J5K5LY]

I'm glad to be back on LI for the most part. I live on the east end so it is less congested than Elmont. I could not live in a heavily congested area. I have woods behind me and hundreds of acres of woods across the street. I do miss some things about Pa but I can deal with it. I visit when I want. I think I miss Knoebels the most! LOL Just kidding but I sure do love that place. I miss the mountains and the deep woods. I miss the bear. I miss the weather. I love the snow and the deep freezes and the crazy hail and all. Yes the cost of living was less but I also made less. I'm paying more than double housing cost here and higher elec and cable but in all, I have more money to spend. Food costs alot more here but I'm not feeding a family now. Just me and my son. and plenty of pets.
I often wondered why all the houses I saw in Pa had elec heat. Now I understand. I never would have made it there financially without the wood stove. My son had a friend that he got the wood from at low cost. I had neighbors that were paying over $500 a month to heat their houses with electric during the winter months. That is 9 months out of the year in NEPA.
Living in Pa was an amazing experience I would not trade for anything but my home is LI.

[mathjak107]

We figured out we can make do on about 20% less than queens ny. But salaries were less than 1/2.
Some things like insurance and utilities are slightly less.
We live in nyc so real estate taxes are about the same.

The problem is that while some things like food and eating out are cheaper many things are the same ..

Buying a car, most goods, college ,etc are the same.many of the big ticket items are just as much.

Even housing may be the same in the sense that we traded a 2 bedroom apartment for a 3000 square ft house for the same money.

While no one stays with us now in queens all the kids will be staying when they visit.

[Jay68442]

Wow small world. I was living in Elmont before we moved. I lived in Elmont for about 20 years. My wife was born in Elmont and lived there her whole life. If you have lived there a long time we probably know who you are. I graduated in 1991 from Sewanhaka and my brother owns twisted metal on meacham ave. Send me a private message if you want to talk to me. I will give you my number.

and Jay- do you think you made the right choice moving from LI to PA?

It was the right choice for us. It's not for everyone and only you can know for sure. I visit LI almost once a month and hate when I get off on Hempstead turnpike. Makes me crazy hitting all that traffic.