Possible Move from South Florida to Burlington, VT Area (Stowe: rent, HOA)

[spectorjam]

My wife and I are considering moving from Vero Beach, FL to the Burlington, VT area and I have several questions for people that live in VT based on the research I have done.

BTW, this forum is a great tool to get info but I still need some more specifics - thanks in advance for your help.

1) Cost of Living - In FL, we run our air conditioner constantly in the summer as it is VERY hot and I tend to see a bill of about $165 a month for electricity. I also spend a great deal of money for hurricane insurance (over $4,500 a year). How does that compare to home insurance and heating costs in the winter in VT? I have seen people say that it is expensive to heat your home but I was hoping to get some actual numbers.

2) My daughter has Spina Bifida and we liked the Vermont children's hospital and services for her but are concerned that the extreme cold weather may be a problem for her. I am hoping that someone on the boards has some experience with the cold weather and this disability.

I do realize that VT is more expensive than FL with taxes and is colder but my wife and I already have taken that into account. Thanks for your help.

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by spectorjam

1) Cost of Living - In FL, we run our air conditioner constantly in the summer as it is VERY hot and I tend to see a bill of about $165 a month for electricity. I also spend a great deal of money for hurricane insurance (over $4,500 a year). How does that compare to home insurance and heating costs in the winter in VT? I have seen people say that it is expensive to heat your home but I was hoping to get some actual numbers.

How many square feet is your house? How efficiently is it sealed? That's part of the electricity/temp maintenance costs.

In our 2000 sq foot house, we pay about $100/month for electricity, which includes AC (which we run several months a year) but not heat.

We pay about $550 per year TOTAL for homeowners insurance, which includes a >$1 million home-business liability policy. BTW, we also pay about $600 per year TOTAL for insurance on both our cars..

[spectorjam]

Thanks for the info. I have about a 1500 sq ft house and it is fairly efficient although the windows are older. My concern is the costs for heating. Several people on the VT postings discuss how expensive it is to heat your house during the winter but don't really give a number.

The HOA sounds very reasonable. Hurricane insurance is a killer in FL and not paying that should easily cover my winter heating bills - I hope. I also pay about three times that amount for car insurance.

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by spectorjam

My concern is the costs for heating. Several people on the VT postings discuss how expensive it is to heat your house during the winter but don't really give a number.

We estimate we'll pay about $2700 to heat our house this 2009/2010 winter. Last year was about $2500. We heat with both an oil furnace and wood pellets.

We have a 2000 sq ft house. It's well over 100 years old and wasn't designed for efficiency, to say the least. We had Efficiency Vermont work it over: rehanging doors, sealing doorways & basement cracks, adding attic insulation, etc., but it's still fairly drafty.

Also, we both work from home so that means we temperature-control the house all day long, not just in after-work/weekend hours. Even when we travel, we have a catsitter move right in and live here while we're gone so the house is pretty much always occupied.

[tkln]

I can give another point of reference...we own a one bedroom condo in Stowe that's about 700 square feet...outer walls are concrete and we have new windows and doors. We do rent it, but times that it's vacant, the thermostat is set to about 65.

Last year, I think our total heating bill ran about $1900, if not more. It was painful. Mostly because our association bought in when oil was about $4.30/gallon...so this year it should be less. But the think you have to keep in mind is that the heating season can run from late September through early April, if not longer...that's a looong time.

[ex-springfielder]

If you move to Vermont look for a newer house as it will have 6 inch or more walls instead of the old 4 inch. I bought a new house last year in Maine and last winter it took about 600 gallons to heat, that includes my hot water. You can multipy the 600 by whatever oil cost, I did keep my thermostat around 62 degrees. Also taxes are very high in Vermont, I lived there all my life until two years ago, the taxes on my house in vermont were $4500/year, insurance though was only $400. The taxes on my new house in Maine are $1800 and it's a bigger house. You also want to make sure you can find work, that's the same pretty much whetever you go but Vermont is really a service based economy much like Florida.

[vter]

It will certainly be a bit of culture shock for you. We vacation in FL every year (on the Gulf Coast) and am always struck by how different it is.
Will you be bringing your job with you?

[foxxtrot]

R U outta your mind....summer here but don't live here year round. Your wife will leave you after one winter.

[Irish4evr]

Originally Posted by tkln

I can give another point of reference...we own a one bedroom condo in Stowe that's about 700 square feet...outer walls are concrete and we have new windows and doors. We do rent it, but times that it's vacant, the thermostat is set to about 65.

Last year, I think our total heating bill ran about $1900, if not more. It was painful. Mostly because our association bought in when oil was about $4.30/gallon...so this year it should be less. But the think you have to keep in mind is that the heating season can run from late September through early April, if not longer...that's a looong time.

Just a thought...quite familiar with the winter/heating thing. if you have on site management, consider lowering the thermostat to 55. Block if not insulated can be a double edged sword.

I think the fuel price is what really burned you last winter, however $1,900 bucks is a lot of money....regardless....Also get involved with the "HOA"..I have noticed many owners take everything at face value...Hold them to accountable.....good luck

[tkln]

Unfortunately, due to some issues with water pipes freezing in years past, thermostats have to be set to 60 or above...I actually meant to write 60 instead of 65, but either way, last year was painful! They locked in at a much better rate this year so hoping to see some relief on that end...