Water bill in Gray? (Johnson City: how much, house, utilities)

[DubbleT]

Originally Posted by DaveinMtAiry

Speaking of water it looks to me like this area has twice as many rainy days as were I live, close to Frederick MD. I checked the monthly rainfall measurements and it is about the same as here but if it rains twice as many days, well that may be a concern.

IMO it's not bad, we get a lot of afternoon showers. They roll in and are gone an hour later. I think it's kind of neat how it can be raining in one part of the tri-cities but you look over in another direction and the sun is shining over there. Makes for a lot of pretty rainbows too.

[jchometeam]

Yes I have never heard rain as a complaint of anyone here- as the last poster said they are typically afternoon pop up showers that come with the heat of the day, then disappear. We also often have long periods of dry spells and then get a few days of rain in a row.

[DaveinMtAiry]

Yeah that's a relief. As we all remember from grade school geography areas on the windward side of the mountains, such as Seattle, get a lot of rain so naturally I thought it was the case here.

But I still go back to the thread title and the issue of water bills and Johnson City tax. Even $50/month as one poster stated is a lot more than we are used to paying in MD with our own well/septic tank. Our plan to move where it is cheap may be derailed if this water bill/city tax is really an issue.

[370z]

Originally Posted by DaveinMtAiry

Yeah that's a relief. As we all remember from grade school geography areas on the windward side of the mountains, such as Seattle, get a lot of rain so naturally I thought it was the case here.

But I still go back to the thread title and the issue of water bills and Johnson City tax. Even $50/month as one poster stated is a lot more than we are used to paying in MD with our own well/septic tank. Our plan to move where it is cheap may be derailed if this water bill/city tax is really an issue.

Same situation with us! Trying to find somewhere inexpensive to move to/retire.

[PacersFan]

Our neighborhood in Gray has the city water and sewer, although some neighborhoods have septic instead of sewer. I'm sure if you are in certain areas you could have a well and septic and therefore, no water bill to worry about. There is a recycling center / garbage center in Gray where you can take your trash.

It is good to ask questions on here, because I do not think all of the realtors are aware of this or they do not mention it. I know on our home disclosure in relation to electric costs it had the average cost at $80. This was absolutely incorrect because our bills are usually $200 - $250. I called the electric company and the former owners had ONE month that their bill was only $80....that was extremely frustrating as a new home purchaser. I should mention that we always use the AC in the warm months due to my husband and son having really bad allergies and I know that drives the cost up, and we are also heating / cooling a house that is nearly 3000 square feet, but to put down the lowest cost as the average cost is terribly misleading.

[DaveinMtAiry]

Originally Posted by PacersFan

Our neighborhood in Gray has the city water and sewer, although some neighborhoods have septic instead of sewer. I'm sure if you are in certain areas you could have a well and septic and therefore, no water bill to worry about. There is a recycling center / garbage center in Gray where you can take your trash.

It is good to ask questions on here, because I do not think all of the realtors are aware of this or they do not mention it. I know on our home disclosure in relation to electric costs it had the average cost at $80. This was absolutely incorrect because our bills are usually $200 - $250. I called the electric company and the former owners had ONE month that their bill was only $80....that was extremely frustrating as a new home purchaser. I should mention that we always use the AC in the warm months due to my husband and son having really bad allergies and I know that drives the cost up, and we are also heating / cooling a house that is nearly 3000 square feet, but to put down the lowest cost as the average cost is terribly misleading.

Boy that is TERRIBLE. I'd be very very upset if I were you. I'll make sure I check for myself, thanks for sharing.

[DaveinMtAiry]

Originally Posted by 370z

Same situation with us! Trying to find somewhere inexpensive to move to/retire.

I know, right? I am still stumped at the thought of the median household income being around $35,000. That is literally half of what it is where we live and trust me this is the land of the pickup and flannel shirt.

I get it, a lot of it is housing and taxes. But I just can't believe that a major purchase like a washer/dryer, or a new alternator for your car, or dinner out will cost so much less in JC that you can make it happen on half the income. .

[theqs]

My family and I moved here from NJ over the summer and have found that some things here are cheaper, and a few more expensive. The cost of living is not as low as you would think.

The major savings for us are property taxes ($1,500 vs. $6,200 in NJ) and car insurance (about a 30% savings). Also, our house here that cost $265,000 would have cost about $750,000 in NJ.

Restaurant meals are only slightly cheaper than in NJ (a few dollars a meal)

Groceries are a little cheaper, as is gasoline and electric.

We actually pay more for TV, internet and phone service ($160 per month vs. $120 per month)

And, as I posted earlier, water is much more expensive. Our bill should work out to about $200 per month here vs. $240 per quarter in NJ.

We are definitely able to live on less here, but it is not 'dirt cheap'.

Also, I have found that salaries here are low, with most office jobs starting at $9 - $10 per hour.

We do love the area and are happy here, though.

[DaveinMtAiry]

$200 a month for water? What is it, mineral water?

[Beretta]

Originally Posted by theqs

My family and I moved here from NJ over the summer and have found that some things here are cheaper, and a few more expensive. The cost of living is not as low as you would think.

The major savings for us are property taxes ($1,500 vs. $6,200 in NJ) and car insurance (about a 30% savings). Also, our house here that cost $265,000 would have cost about $750,000 in NJ.

Restaurant meals are only slightly cheaper than in NJ (a few dollars a meal)

Groceries are a little cheaper, as is gasoline and electric.

We actually pay more for TV, internet and phone service ($160 per month vs. $120 per month)

And, as I posted earlier, water is much more expensive. Our bill should work out to about $200 per month here vs. $240 per quarter in NJ.

We are definitely able to live on less here, but it is not 'dirt cheap'.

Also, I have found that salaries here are low, with most office jobs starting at $9 - $10 per hour.

We do love the area and are happy here, though.

You've either got a leak, busted pipe somewhere, a problem with the meter or someone hooked into your water. $200 a month is not a normal rate for this area.