moving to springfield in November

[StormiEssence]

For TV - You can get either Mediacom Cable, The Dish or Direct TV.

For Bank - I LOVE US BANK!

For Utilities - includes gas, water, electric, sewer....only City Utilities in city of Springfield. But outside of city limits of Springfield, other companies provide those service(s) in some areas (I think).

For Cell - for rural areas....Alltel (now Verizon).

Also, you have to purchase your own trash services. I have talked to friends in other cities and I know some cities provide trash service and they pay the fee on their utility bill or whatever. But in city of Springfield, you have to have your own trash service.

[jess_rene]

Best Cell phone service.
I had ATT and was kind of indifferent about it. Pleased, but not thrilled. Shop around for deals... there is alot of company transitioning going on in the area right now.

Best Cable service
Only Cable option is mediacom. They are known for raising their rates frequently and by quite a bit, but they usually have really great new client specials that you can lock in for a year or two. Plus, if you get both their cable and internet, they will give you a bundle discount. I would NOT recommend satellite TV with all of the weather issues in Springfield. It is ALWAYS going out. If there is any wind, rain, or snow, you have a great shot of losing your TV for the night. Not worth the frustration to save a few bucks a month, in my opinion.

Insurance
Like other people have said, there are lots of variables for car and home/renter's insurance. But we (and alot of other couples we know) found the best deal with State Farm. They have SUPER multiple plan discounts, so if you get both your car and home insurance through them, you get a really good deal. Same if you have more than one car, etc.

[8 SNAKE]

Originally Posted by jess_rene

I would NOT recommend satellite TV with all of the weather issues in Springfield. It is ALWAYS going out. If there is any wind, rain, or snow, you have a great shot of losing your TV for the night.

I'm going to have to challenge you on this claim. I've had satellite tv down here for more than seven years and it is most certainly not ALWAYS going out. I will lose signal in a heavy rain, but that is relatively infrequent and almost never lasts for prolonged periods of time. I can't imagine that my case is unique to this area.

[StormiEssence]

Originally Posted by 8 SNAKE

I'm going to have to challenge you on this claim. I've had satellite tv down here for more than seven years and it is most certainly not ALWAYS going out. I will lose signal in a heavy rain, but that is relatively infrequent and almost never lasts for prolonged periods of time. I can't imagine that my case is unique to this area.

I have the Dish and I RARELY have problems with the satellite going out. And when it has I either switch to watching something via DVR or I just wait it out until it comes back on....but its never been more then a few mins and the Dish is coming back on due to the weather (usually rain).