Hoping to estimate our electic costs any input appreciated!

[alyrich2]

[quote=Southwesthiker;22843733]The house has a heat pump which we also have here in Indiana and the new house also has a wood fireplace that we plan to use when it's gets extra cold in January and Feburary. We have the wood burning stove here in Indiana and we always use it when it is extra cold and it works well.

Where in Indiana do you live? We are in Northwest Indiana. Planning on moving in 2-3yrs. Winters are to long, springs cold and wet, summers well that's a mixed bag could be cool and damp or hot and humid with plenty of mosquitos, june bugs, flies, and natsthen in the fall the yellow jakets are terrible! We will be coming to look at different neighborhoods in Prescott Valley in May. We loved the area when we came 2 years ago.

[DellNec]

It all depends on WHERE in Prescott you will live. Higher elevations will get colder requiring higher energy costs. The second biggest factor will be how well insulated is the home? The attic insulation, windows and walls will all play a role in heat loss.

Prescott is a heating dominant climate, which means that the area requires more heating than it does cooling. The months from November - April will require you to spend money on heating the home. The summers are mild enough to only require the A/C on a limited basis.

If you can find a home that utilizes passive solar on the southern most windows, that will help a lot on saving electric costs during winter.

[AZLetendre]

One thing that will help, APS has a plan where your monthly bill never changes. Once you establish a normal, they can do that and it helps you budget easily.

[Southwesthiker]

Where in Indiana do you live? We are in Northwest Indiana. Planning on moving in 2-3yrs. Winters are to long, springs cold and wet, summers well that's a mixed bag could be cool and damp or hot and humid with plenty of mosquitos, june bugs, flies, and natsthen in the fall the yellow jakets are terrible! We will be coming to look at different neighborhoods in Prescott Valley in May. We loved the area when we came 2 years ago.



We live in the Goshen/Elkhart area. I hear you about the Cold and Damp and hot and humid and the bugs. This winter has been nice all things considered. We have visited Prescott numerious times over the past 5 years and generally liked it. Everyplace has it's pros and cons we are not looking through rose colored glasses. We thought about just going a little south of here but we wanted to try somthing different and liked the west with all the varried landscapes. Time will tell if we like it enough to stay for the rest of our lives. Florida is nice but humid, same with Texas. We know people that have moved to a number of towns in Arizona and they all speak favorably of it, especially if you are going into retirement. Staying here would be fine also but we are outdoor lovers and have animals (horses and dogs) and we really are trapped inside from November to April and that is just to long. As a note I hear allot of talk about lack of good jobs in Prescott but few realize that places like Northern Indiana are really getting slammed. A recent Wall Street Journal Article had us at the top the list here in Elkhart/Goshen for the largest decine in household income in the entire united states since 2007 and I know that on a percentage basis Indiana has More homes in Forclosure than Arizona (that one shocks most people) and we still have nearly 10% unemplyment. There are vancant homes up our street and we live in a great neighborhood. We are not going to be working, retired so jobs are not an issue. Anyway I would encourage you to look around allot, I hear good things and know people in NC that like that state. The main reason we picked Prescott Arizona was the weather is moderate all year. There are bugs but compared to here that don't amount to anything. Also the dryer climate we think will be easier on our bodies after decades of dampness. People tell us it will be so hot in August in Prescott but as you know being outside here in Indiana on an 85 degree day with 75% humidity is horrid and the bugs eat you alive, I'm willing to try 95 degrees and dry for a few summers. We have a porch and Never eat out in the summer because of the humidity and bugs! Also just the sunshine, we get so depressed with the day after day after day of grey sky here. And at least northern arizona has trees and the trees remind us of the midwest, a little. We will miss the green for sure, and our close friends and family more than anything, but again no place is perfect and change is not easy. We just hope to make new friends fast so as to feel at home there and hope to have lots of visitors.