NOVA Cost Comparisons

[SteelCityRising]

Well I'm a young bachelor living in a very expensive part of Fairfax County, so while your experience may vary I will attempt to take a stab at this.

Originally Posted by ToDCKickingAndScreaming

First and foremost - I appreciate all the advice people have given me on this forum. As I am trying to do a cost comparison between NOVA and Austin, TX, I am trying to figure out the smaller items that will likely bite us. I already found about a $4500 a month difference between Austin and NOVA (factoring in housing, car tax, state income tax, and child care - and this is us paying $4500 more a month even with us reducing our standard of living to a less desireable house). Any information you wish to share on any of the following questions would be greatly appreciated. When I have finished my cost estimates I will post them on this forum.

1) How much is your average cable bill? Internet bill? electric? gas? heat (is it the same as gas)? water? phone? garbage?

Electric bill for my 800-square-foot 1-BR apartment was $52 last month. I have a bundle package from Comcast and pay just over $100/month for high-speed Internet and a pretty good cable package. My gas is included in my base rent, so sadly I can't help you out here. Ditto my other utilities. I (and many others who have recently moved here) don't even have land-line phones. I'm still on my family's cell phone plan with AT&T because my father receives a better discount through his employer than I would through my own.

2) How much is a typical full house cleaning (for single family home)? (we pay $80 per cleaning in Austin).

Cleaning? Who does that? Meh. That probably explains why I still don't have a boyfriend! LOL!

3) How much is a typical lawn moving service (front and back) - assume 1/4 acre? (we pay $35 for front and back in Austin)

Sorry. I can't help you out here.

4) How much might home owners insurance be on a 550K house?

No idea.

5) Are HOA fees common? If so, how much on average?

NoVA is suburbia on steroids, so many areas do have HOA fees. They will certainly vary. EVERY homeowner in Reston, for example, outside of Reston Town Center has an HOA fee levied upon them, and then some are still whammied again by a "cluster" fee.

6) How much is snow removal (driveway + sidewalk shoveling)?

Give me Chick-Fil-A, and I'll shovel them both for free!

7) How much is skilled labor? (in Austin we have a $15 an hour guy who can do just about anything)

I'm not sure of this, but capable-looking day laborers are pouring out of every nook and cranny in Fairfax County, especially along Elden Street in Herndon or West Broad Street in Falls Church.

8) Is car insurance more expensive than average?

My car insurance went down considerably when I moved here from Pennsylvania. I pay roughly $100/month for my auto and renter's insurance combined. I drive a 2008 Mazda3 sedan.

9) How much is a gallon of gas?

I've seen varying prices recently from $2.65/gallon - $2.75/gallon. Gas prices tend to be higher in The District.

10) What is an average grocery bill for a family of 4? (I remember being sticker shocked at some items in a DC area grocery store).

I can't help you out here, unfortunately, either.

11) Any out of the ordinary expenses for kids (I've already found daycare is about 2x as much)?

Not sure.

12) Any out of the ordinary expenses for pets (such as registation fees, large vet bills, etc - we have 2 cats and a dog)

Deferring to others.

13) Any other gotchas I may have missed?

Obviously just be aware that Virginia levies an annual "personal property tax" on vehicles, based upon their fair market value at the time. I just paid roughly $181 for my Mazda3 this year, down from nearer to $200 last year.

[novadc]

1) How much is your average cable bill? Internet bill? electric? gas? heat (is it the same as gas)? water? phone? garbage?
We pay a bit over $100/mo. for cable, but we have HD and DVR, etc. Internet is $60/mo. Gas depends on the season. In the summer, it's been as low as $20. In the winter close to $200 (we have gas heat). Electric varies as well- generally higher in the summer, lower in the winter.

2) How much is a typical full house cleaning (for single family home)? (we pay $80 per cleaning in Austin).
I don't know the answer to this, but I had a friend who used to use maid services and I believe it was like 80 or 100/cleaning.

3) How much is a typical lawn moving service (front and back) - assume 1/4 acre? (we pay $35 for front and back in Austin)
No idea on this one- don't have a yard per se!

4) How much might home owners insurance be on a 550K house? I'd have to check on this one

5) Are HOA fees common? If so, how much on average? Yes, HOA fees are common. We pay about $250 quarterly.

6) How much is snow removal (driveway + sidewalk shoveling)? This is a non-issue. In 7 years I've shoveled the snow 2 of those years. It usually doesn't snow enough where you have to shovel.

7) How much is skilled labor? (in Austin we have a $15 an hour guy who can do just about anything) I can't get a plumber, handyman, etc. to show up for less than $100. I've found many have a $100 minimum just to show up.

8) Is car insurance more expensive than average? Don't know about this one.

9) How much is a gallon of gas? Varies, I think I just paid $2.75

10) What is an average grocery bill for a family of 4? (I remember being sticker shocked at some items in a DC area grocery store). I don't know, it's just the 2 of us and I shop at Whole Foods, so, ours is probably more expensive than average.

11) Any out of the ordinary expenses for kids (I've already found daycare is about 2x as much)? No kids, so don't know, but I do know a lot of people go to MyGym and Gymboree, etc. in this area

12) Any out of the ordinary expenses for pets (such as registation fees, large vet bills, etc - we have 2 cats and a dog)
My vet charges about $70 for an exam, then over $100 for a CBC. I think that's about average?

13) Any other gotchas I may have missed?
My car tax for 2 cars is about $400/year, property tax is about $5500/yr.

[CAVA1990]

Sounds like you're grasping at reasons not to move here. Why don't you just go with your gut and move to Austin? I'll give you a good one - the people there are a lot more interesting.

[novadc]

Well, I sympathize with her- you can't always do what you want or go with your gut. Sometimes you have to move due to financial or family reasons. If I could go with my gut, I'd never leave DC. I don't know if that's possible, though- it all depends on if my husband can find another job. If not, it will be best if we leave. So, I can see that while see doesn't really want to move here, she may have to, and she's looking for information to make her feel more comfortable about the move if it occurs. Hang in there Austin lady!

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

Sounds like you're grasping at reasons not to move here. Why don't you just go with your gut and move to Austin? I'll give you a good one - the people there are a lot more interesting.

What? You don't like hearing people talk about their jobs seven days per week.

[Gottasay]

Out of the ordinary expenses for kids: although most museums are free, factor in tolls, parking, metro, and food...or plan it so that you can avoid or lessen some of those costs...eg., going to the museums on the weekends, avoiding toll roads, bringing in your own food, taking metro off-peak, etc.

[movingtodcfromseattle]

I second the "food" line item. With so much to do around here you tend to be on the go during the lunch hour. We pack a LOT of picnic items and take them with us.

[normie]

Originally Posted by movingtodcfromseattle

I second the "food" line item. With so much to do around here you tend to be on the go during the lunch hour. We pack a LOT of picnic items and take them with us.

I'm a big fan of bringing my own food, too. Not only do you save a lot of money, but you have control over what you're eating. No extra ingredients that you might not want, and you can season things the way you like it.

[stpickrell]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

Sounds like you're grasping at reasons not to move here. Why don't you just go with your gut and move to Austin? I'll give you a good one - the people there are a lot more interesting.

That's what I thought as well.

As for interesting, folks will be as interesting -- or boring -- as you want them to be anywhere, I suppose.