What to know before relocating to Ft Lauderdale from Westchester County NY

[fauve]

I love people like rereis who say "no disrespect" and then proceed to do just that

[bale002]

Originally Posted by Elvi03

Does anyone have examples based on the size of the age and size of their home?

I have a 3200 4bd/3bth home in NY and last month my electric and heating was $781. Is that comparable to a bad cooling month in Florida, say the middle of August for a comparable home?

My home insurance is a little over 1400 a year...will that double?

Yes, your homeowners insurance will likely double, possibly more than double; there are more variables than just size of house, but, again, take double as a good estimate.

As for utilities, it takes more energy to heat than cool.

Personally, I hate air-conditioning and try to limit using it from May to October. On the other hand, some people are obsessed with it and use it 24/7/365 (except during cold spells, as mentioned, which usually last no more than four-five days at time). So it really depends on how you adapt to average temperatures here. If you think 75 degrees is hot and needs cooling, you will have high bills. I usually set the thermostat at 80 for cooling and 64-68 for heating, meaning that most of the time the HVAC system is idle, the way nature intended it to be. The size of my house is similar to yours and I manage to keep my monthly bill to less than $150; if I am not present during the summer months and use the AC only to keep out the humidity, the monthy bill will be about the same. However, an AC hog, in that size house, will run bills of $350-$600 per month all year round.

Consult the FPL website for details on pricing, usually measured at kilowatt per hour, I believe it is 12.5 cents; it also contains illustrations on average costs for the different areas and sources of use in and around the house.

Hope this helps.

[Shoegal1075]

was your pool heated?