Cost of living averages in Hurricane questions (Compared to Honolulu, HI) (St. George: car insurance, house)

[Made_In_Anahola]

Aloha,

I will be leaving my lovely little rock (Oahu) to venture a new frontier: Hurricane, UT. I am an island girl, who has lived in CA, AZ, & FL, and would love to stay, but the recession has hit Hawaii so hard the dream of home ownership for me is a million light years away.

My questions are in regard to the cost of living.

Currently I pay $1350/month for a 3br 1ba (630 sqft) cottage in downtown Honolulu--no utilities are included.

Board of Water Supply - $135-165 every 2 months
Hawaiian Electric - $170-190/month
Direct Tv Satellite (I don't care for roadrunner)- $75
HawaiianTel Wireless Internet - $35/month (for life)
Kaiser Medical- I contribute $110/month for just my medical premium
Geico car insurance (full coverage) for 2 vehicles - $130/month
Groceries for a family of 5 - $500-$650/month

What can I expect there? Is there more than one cable/wireless internet company? I have tons of other questions, but will save those for later.

Please advise on the cost of living....and if you know of any great Vietnamese or Thai restaurants--

Much Mahalo!

[scotttenorman]

I live in Ivins, outside of St. George, I assume prices are similar?
I am very simple. So that means not a lot of extras?
This is for the first three months I have been here.

Rocky mtn power. $25 each month give or take a couple of bucks. I can't believe it either!!!

Questar gas $75 for Jan, $25 for feb (I usually keep the heater on about 68, and turn it off at night, sometimes didn't turn it back on until 5pm or so.) Not much laundry, not much cooking with gas stove.

Water, garbage and sewer has been $77 every month. I didn't water any plants or grass.

I think I pay $30 for internet? It's baja, it's the slower of the two speeds, it streams video just fine. I think it's all I have available in Ivins?

I pay $65 month for tmobile cell phone. Only 300 mins, 5 favorites, and unlimited internet. (actually they still think I live in CA, so it might be different here? sorry) Coverage has been fine by me, but I don't talk much.

It's a 1360 sq.ft. house. Very, very modest lifestyle.

[KidsinVegas]

As long as you have the income you'll pay about half of what you are paying now... except who knows what kind of health coverage you can get. And of course you'll still need to eat so that won't change much.

How 5 people can live in 630 sq feet... wow! I guess when you spend most of your time outside it's easier?

[Kurvinek]

The last three months I have spent about a week monthly in my small house (1200 sq.ft) doing remodeling of the kitchen at my pace.I drive from Arizona where I have another property.
So far I am very happy with my purchase and my neighbours.
Very nice people and I don't care about their religion.
Funny.It was the Jehova witnesses who beat the Mormons at my doorsteps.
What bothers me is the city,county and state government.
The experience I had with them did change my decision to open business in SG.
Utilities in Saint George cost me around 100$ MONTHLY for the 4-5 days I spent there.
I do not use the city garbage pick-up but I have to pay for it (10.70).
I have asked the City to stop charging me for the service but they said I would have to cancel either electric or water. Makes no sense because I want to have my sprinkler operational when I am not there.
My neighbour said I am being treated like this because of my accent.
Well,I don't know about that but I don't like it and I don't know of anybody who pays for service they don't use.
I know that Utah(one of 12 states,so far) is suing the federal government for the fact that the government cannot make you to pay for the healthcare if you don't want.
I don't want the garbage pick up and was told if I don't pay the City of SG will turn off my water and Electric.
Fools in my opinion. I shall see what the future brings...
My business would bring them much more then 10 bucks a month.
Next time I'll talk about how "easy" it is to register a couple of vehicles and a Rv in SG.Fools.They have too much money...
I still recommend SG for the "other" advantages it has.
City of St. George*|*Water, Power, Sewer, Garbage Rates**

[Made_In_Anahola]

Yes, 630 sq ft is really small. It is a little cottage built in 1919, and back then there was no need for a lot of room. I like it, but would love to be paying for my own home.

$25/ month for electricity?!?! I'm going to research this further and see what others say- I will be in a 3-4 br home.

Another questions I have is regarding snakes...how often are they seen? There are no snakes in Hawaii--or rabies, so I know that I need to get my puppy vaccinated.

Mahalo to all!

[scotttenorman]

I know it's hard to believe $25 per month for electricity!! ha ha I just got this months bill and it is $21 (I was gone for a week).

A better way to figure it out is by kwh. I used 192kwh this month, which worked out to $15. The remaining $6 are for taxes and useage fees. It wil go up dramatically, I assume, when I start using the air conditioner.

It is 0.078 per kwh. It should be easy to figure out that way.

My dryer, stove, and heater all run on natural gas. It's just me, I am pretty good about not leaving lights on, and I don't leave any lights on inside or out when I go to bed.

I saw a gopher snake last week on one of the trails in Santa Clara. It was a small (one foot) gopher snake. They are harmless, but they do mimic rattlesnakes by shaking their tales and hissing. Most of the people I have talked to say that rattlesnakes are a rare sighting.

Good luck, and remember I am in Ivins, it might be completely differernt in Hurricane.