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Sky pays less taxes because he's in a condo-he pays based on the assessment of his unit-his condo association pays property taxes too based on the assessment of all the common areas and land. Those are passed on to him in the form of condo fees. So, he doesn't have lower taxes-he just pays them in two separate ways.
The electric costs are much higher here. I don't know anyone who has a $160 electric bill. Mine was more than that when I didn't have AC and had oil for hot water heat. My current apt. with central air that is usually off, runs closer to $400.
If the town mowed my lawn it would probably cost $5000 a month...
P.S. What if I don't want to pay? Do I still have too? I mean, no kids in the public school system, no sewer, no water...I have to fight to get pot holes filled etc. I want a credit damn it! Or I could be happy that I pay $520 a month for garbage collection!
Please tell me your joking about the $520 garbage bill.... Please..
Sky pays less taxes because he's in a condo-he pays based on the assessment of his unit-his condo association pays property taxes too based on the assessment of all the common areas and land. Those are passed on to him in the form of condo fees. So, he doesn't have lower taxes-he just pays them in two separate ways.
The electric costs are much higher here. I don't know anyone who has a $160 electric bill. Mine was more than that when I didn't have AC and had oil for hot water heat. My current apt. with central air that is usually off, runs closer to $400.
Wow, those are high electric bills. I'll need to do some calculating.
$160 is cheap for electricity with a/c running. For a house that size and running a/c you can expect over $200/month. As for car tax, about $200/each, minimum. I had a car older than your Saturn (a Nissan) that I paid close to $200 on last time..might have been around $175.
Synopsis - I know that you are not looking to buy right now, but here was my experience while living in West Hartford:
Water - our water bill was no more than $45 per quarter. My lawn has no sprinklers but we water significantly with the portable ones during the summer.
Trash - I don't remember paying a separate trash bill...must be included somewhere in my taxes.
Oil - We have signed up for a level pay plan which started out at $99/month back in 1999 and was up to about $140/month by 2006. It goes for 10 months and then a true-up happens before the 12-month period is up. This is easier for us on the cash flow as we are able to budget that amount monthly and prepare for the true-up on month 11-12 before the next contract period expires. Furnace maintenance is extra at around $170 annually, which BTW, I recommend you do on an older home. It is the oil company's responsibility to make sure that you have regular deliveries at a specified time. You don't have to call them and if you ever run out of oil at the same time everybody does, then you can yell at them for letting you dry out. They should be there very quickly.
Property taxes - We sold our home in early 2007 for $300K, a 1700 sq ft home built in 1950. The last valuation on that home was done in 2001 I believe after a grand list was done (and rebutted by some not agreeing with the valuation). Our last property tax bill was on an assessment value of $110K for which we paid $4800 in PT. Our 1994 Accord was assessed at about $248 and our 2000 Odyssey at around $500.
Electricity - we paid a high of $400 in one month in one year to cool down this home with 4 window air conditioners.
Labor - Plumbers charge about $75-$100 per hour. Try not to bust your pipes in the winter as they (the plumbers) become overstretched and scarce and you may not see repairs for days. The furnace people who maintain my radiator pipes charge $110 per hour. When you finally buy your home, develop these relationships very early on and become very good friends with plumbers. Housecleaning normally runs $75-$95 to clean this much square footage...some more than others where I lived.
Permits & Other Town Nuances - Each town has its own set of building codes and rules. Some towns are stricter and more retentive than others when applying for building permits. Notorious are WH, Glastonbury and Farmington.
Hope this helps...
Last edited by BagongBuhay; 08-08-2008 at 09:40 AM..
Reason: spelling
Sky pays less taxes because he's in a condo-he pays based on the assessment of his unit-his condo association pays property taxes too based on the assessment of all the common areas and land. Those are passed on to him in the form of condo fees. So, he doesn't have lower taxes-he just pays them in two separate ways.
The electric costs are much higher here. I don't know anyone who has a $160 electric bill. Mine was more than that when I didn't have AC and had oil for hot water heat. My current apt. with central air that is usually off, runs closer to $400.
My electric bill last month with central air-running less then half the time was under $130.
Whew, I'm glad to hear that the electric bills aren't astronomically high! What does a typical gas bill run if you're living in an apartment (or electric if it's an all electric apt).
Whew, I'm glad to hear that the electric bills aren't astronomically high! What does a typical gas bill run if you're living in an apartment (or electric if it's an all electric apt).
Sorry for so many questions!
Gas is for now more costwise
last winter in a 2 level end unit townhouse 1100 square feet with lots of windows and skylights- my max bill was $135.
Synopsis - thanks for the rep. Might I also suggest that wherever you decide to live, check to see if there is an online version of the town ordinance where you decide to live. WH has a rather hefty pdf file on its website which has become a very handy reference for me. It discusses things like noise ordinance, street parking (very important esp. on snow days; some towns don't allow overnight street parking without asking for a permit and tag and would only go for 3 days - like WH), pets (e.g. 3 dogs constitute a kennel), maintenance of your lawn, etc. etc. Very interesting reading I have to say.
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I mean, no kids in the public school system, no sewer, no water...I have to fight to get pot holes filled etc. I want a credit damn it! Or I could be happy that I pay $520 a month for garbage collection!
), pets (e.g. 3 dogs constitute a kennel), maintenance of your lawn, etc. etc. Very interesting reading I have to say.
