Carmel Valley renting-what utility cost to expect ? (San Diego: apartment, to rent)

[alleah]

Hello everyone,
We are thinking to move to SD and really like Carmel Valley area for many reasons.
Besides the rent, what other expenses may cost us?
Electric, Gas, Water, Phone, Cable.,Etc,
How much is annual car registration and average full coverage car insurance?
Are there other expenses that we, provincial Ohioans do not know about?
What about School expenses? We have two kids-by the time we move they will be 14 and 4. How expensive are activities for kids?
How much is to rent an average Tennis Court?

I'm sure there are more to know. Please, give me some ideas.

[kettlepot]

Car registration is, I believe, $62/year. In addition you are taxed .65% of the depreciated value of your car. That means if it was a 2001 car that you paid 20k for, it would be depreciated 10% per year. That would make the taxable value for 2008 $8k for an additional personal property tax of $52.

Gas and electric depends greatly on the size of your house, and how far you are from the coast. Utility costs increase as you move inland because of greater temperature extremes. Without knowing any of these things, I would guess $50/month spring and fall months, rising to about $100/month in the summer and winter. These are just broad guesses, hardly estimates at all. If you are an AC addict, the summer could be even higher.

Water costs will vary on how much landscaping you have to irrigate. If you have drought tolerant landscaping, your water/sewer bill should be under $100/month (city water is billed bimonthly so under $200 per billing)

A typical no frills phone/cable/internet package will run about $100 per month.

[alleah]

Thank you for reply,
I think it would be a Condo about 1500 Sq.F.

What can you or anyone else give me idea about car and property insurance as well as other things, mentionet in my previous post.

Thanks

[Olivenhain]

Current rents for a 3 bedroom apartment in Carmel Valley are around $2300-2800/month. I can't imagine you would have a utility bill less than $300/month, for gas/electric/water. Your insurance agent should give you a quote for insurance here, it varies widely on type of vehicles, prior accidents & tickets, etc. Cable/internet about $100-120/month. Gas will be slightly more expensive here. School expenses vary widely on what activities your kids are into. A good tennis club will run $200/month or so.

Estimated only.

Our utility bills average $800+/month. Car insurance ~$4200/year. Club membership ~$800/month. Property taxes $19,000/year. Etc...

Life's expensive here, but it is every other nice place as well...

[kettlepot]

I don't know how someone in San Diego can have utility bills that average $800/month!

You must have every pay-per-view channel on your cable service, several unlimited minutes cell phone plans and long distance, plus a huge lot that you keep watered to subtropical lushness along with a desire to never let the internal temperature of your house deviate on tenth of a degree from 72 all year long.

My Gas & Electric, Water & Sewer, and Cable, Phone & Internet consistently run under $200/month. But I do agree with your assessment that all of these combined might run $300/month for the OP. They would have to be add on a lot of the frills to run much above that.

[alleah]

What OP stands for?

[Olivenhain]

Originally Posted by kettlepot

I don't know how someone in San Diego can have utility bills that average $800/month!

You must have every pay-per-view channel on your cable service, several unlimited minutes cell phone plans and long distance, plus a huge lot that you keep watered to subtropical lushness along with a desire to never let the internal temperature of your house deviate on tenth of a degree from 72 all year long.

Actually, we don't have any pay-per-view or premium cable channels. 2100 minutes on Verizon for the whole family to share, no texting. A little under an acre, with mostly native type landscaping. Keep the house under 68 in the winter and over 76 in the summer. We don't have a huge home; ~4000'.

Typical bills run:
Cable TV/Internet $90
Landline phone $80
Cell phones (4) $120
Water ~$220
Gas/electric ~$290
Homeowners insurance $90
That's $890 right there...

Figure in property taxes, maintenance, car insurance, etc. and it adds up.

[kettlepot]

OP stands for "Original Poster." Alleah, that would be you.

I'm seeing where the big differences are now.

Landline phone: I pay under $20/month
Cell phones: Don't have one
Water: $50 - $60
Gas/Electric: $30 - 60 depending on the season

Of course, my home is much smaller, only 1000 sq ft.