Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hello, everyone! My husband and I are looking at possibly moving to Elizabeth City in just under a year. I am a planner, and I'm trying to build a budget to see what we will be able to afford. I've read that the cost of electricity in Elizabeth City is particularly high, but I haven't been able to get a good estimate on what that might look like. It's just me and my husband (no kids) and our five cats, and they use remarkable little electricity. We currently live in the Phoenix, AZ area where we keep our thermostat at 78 or 79 in the summer and probably 70 to 72 in the winter. We try to limit our electricity use as much as possible within reason. We don't unplug alarm clocks and coffee pots while we're not using them or anything, but we do turn lights off when we leave a room. Anyway, can anyone from EC (or the surrounding area) possibly give me an estimate on what your monthly electric bills are? Please also include the approximate square footage of your home, so I can get a gauge. Thank you!!
I've read that the cost of electricity in Elizabeth City is particularly high, but I haven't been able to get a good estimate on what that might look like.
I don't live in EC, but will comment to start the ball rolling. The electric company is run by Elizabeth City itself, or at least you pay electric bills to the City. That is a weird situation I have not seen before. Electric companies on the coast are often small member-owned corporations (AKA co-ops). It would be understandable that the rates are high because it has a small base of users and a bureaucracy running it.
If you are serious about moving to the area, you could also consider nearby Camden County. The Coast Guard people seem to favor Camden County also. I haven't been able to find out which electric company services that county, but i hope someone else chimes in.
Status:
"48 years in MD, 18 in NC"
(set 11 days ago)
Location: Greenville, NC
2,309 posts, read 6,102,582 times
Reputation: 1430
Quote:
Originally Posted by goldenage1
I don't live in EC, but will comment to start the ball rolling. The electric company is run by Elizabeth City itself, or at least you pay electric bills to the City. That is a weird situation I have not seen before. Electric companies on the coast are often small member-owned corporations (AKA co-ops). It would be understandable that the rates are high because it has a small base of users and a bureaucracy running it.
Didn't you tell me once that you came here from Maryland too. SMECO, the power company for Charles and St. Mary's counties, is a co-op. Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative.
Our bill averages around $225 a month. I'm in Greenville. We have a 1,500 sq ft house with a heat pump and all electric appliances. We also have a 1,000 sq ft in-law residence on the same bill. It also has a heat pump and all electric appliances. They're both on the same electric bill.
As a comparison, our electric bill in MD would be around $375 to $425 a month for the same amount of electricity.
It is true that there are cheaper places to get electricity but on the other hand, there are places where it costs a whole lot more.
Elizabeth City has a reputation for very high electric rates. I read an article somewhere on why but it something about rebuilding of the grid infrasturcture. EC rates are very high. The other posters advice about Camden County is solid.
looks like they charge 13.18 cents per KwH + a $10 flat fee. I would assume there are taxes too, that's where a local can really help.
Since you aren't in the area this is sort of a granny smith to golden delicious comparison. For a vague guesstimate you could see how many kilowatt hours you currently use, then multiply it by the new city's rate. since they aren't in the city their rate will vary, but the usage can be useful.
It would also be really helpful if some coastal residents from the region posted how many kilowatt hours they average for what size house. then you would be able to multiply their local usage by the city's rate.
FWIW we paid about $240/month in the warmest period, July of 2011. We have a 3400 SF house and 2 zones with 2 HVAC units. That's with Jones-Onslow Electric.
The KWH from July 7-Aug 6 in 2012 was 1880 total or 65 KWH/day average. 2011 was hotter, and the same period in 2011 was 2204 total or 74 KWH/day average. We keep the thermostat at 73 during the day and 75 at night, so we are not super-conservative. I think our bills are reasonable for the house.
I think this is 11.29 cents per KWH, which is cheaper than the Elizabeth City rate. I hope the OP can do the math for their potential house.
Last edited by goldenage1; 05-13-2013 at 01:20 PM..
I live in town in Elizabeth City and on the most recent electric bill they are charging 12.06 cents per kilowatt hour of use. They also are the water company and base your water rates on the meter reading but base your sewage rates on the average water usage during the winter months when you are least likely to be using water outside with car washing, lawn watering, pools and such.
The current water rate is $9.28 per 1000 used, and the current Sewage rate is $5.43 per 1000 estimated usage. The current Residential Refuse which included recycling is $22.00 per month. Our current bill for all of it is $253.69, which is not too bad but recently Early 2017, they have had a lot of billing issues due to a new system that was all screwed up to the point that they returned to their old system. Right now they are trying to charge us for an extra 94 bucks from last month but by all of our records we should be a little bit ahead. Our 2,040 square foot two story house was built in 1920 and is only partially insulated. We are slowly getting more rooms done but it's a slow, expensive and time consuming process.
The Electric rates here in town are higher than in the surrounding county areas because we are part of a co-op that built their own power station, so they are paying back something like a million bucks a year to pay off their part of it.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
