Southerner wanting to move up north. Advice please (Boston, Worcester: section 8, crime rate)

[in_newengland]

Originally Posted by Cattawampusfiddlesticks

Oh wow by the bag!?!?!?

Don't know what you mean but if it's the trash, we put it into rolling bins and it goes out by the curb. I've lived in a few towns that charged you every month though.

[Cattawampusfiddlesticks]

Originally Posted by in_newengland

Don't know what you mean but if it's the trash, we put it into rolling bins and it goes out by the curb. I've lived in a few towns that charged you every month though.

Sorry about that. I’m at work and boss was here I was trying not to get caught. Someone said that some places up there charge you by the bag of trash but not a flat rate for the month.

[brightdoglover]

Originally Posted by Cattawampusfiddlesticks

... Someone said that some places up there charge you by the bag of trash but not a flat rate for the month.

In my former town, there was no town pick-up- you had to take your stuff to the dump/transfer station. You bought special bags for about $1.50 each (big bags) for trash and recycled everything there that could be recycled. Had to pay an annual rate for a dump sticker that was way too expensive before the pay-per-bag plan came in.

If the town doesn't have pick-up, you can hire a service to do the same.

[magicshark]

Originally Posted by Cattawampusfiddlesticks

Oh wow by the bag!?!?!?

In Worcester yes. It's something like 75 cents for a small bag and a dollar fifty for a big bag. My family of 2 kids, 2 adults, 3 cats and 2 dogs use one large bag a week. Recycling is free.

When I lived in Lowell it was one large wheeled bin and recycling once a week included in your taxes. In Townsend two barrels and recycling once a week included in your taxes. Basically every city or town does it different.

[Cattawampusfiddlesticks]

That’s really interesting!!!

[brightdoglover]

In formerly rural areas, this is more likely (the bag thing, a town dump/transfer station) than in more developed towns or cities.

[OutdoorLover]

I lived in a town in western NY where the trash was picked up by a service, but they'd only pick it up if it was in special bags that you bought downtown (or for larger items, had a special sticker on it). What this does is that people are charged according to how much they actually throw out. Whether that's done in the interest of fairness or done to give people a reason to reduce landfill waste, I actually didn't think it was a bad idea.

[bizcuit]

Originally Posted by scorpio516

There are lots of variables.

Gas v. oil v. electric heat. Age and insulation of the building.
Electric heat in an old house, $500/mo in the winter wouldn't be out of the picture.
Gas heat in a remodeled house, less than $100/mo in the winter. Then depends on AC for the summer.
We do have some of the highest electrical rates in the country.

Water - MANY properties, even in semi-urban towns, have wells and septic.

Trash? Worcester for example charges by the bag, not a flat rate!

My trash and recycling pickup in Northampton is around $30 per month, for a weekly pickup for trash company-provided bins. So close to the OP's current bill anyway.

[bizcuit]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

In my former town, there was no town pick-up- you had to take your stuff to the dump/transfer station. You bought special bags for about $1.50 each (big bags) for trash and recycled everything there that could be recycled. Had to pay an annual rate for a dump sticker that was way too expensive before the pay-per-bag plan came in.

If the town doesn't have pick-up, you can hire a service to do the same.

Most towns around here have the transfer station option. You buy a yearly sticker for like $15 or so. Or you can have private company pickup, which is what I do.

[wmass]

Originally Posted by bizcuit

My trash and recycling pickup in Northampton is around $30 per month, for a weekly pickup for trash company-provided bins. So close to the OP's current bill anyway.

In Northampton, you can buy a transfer station sticker for $25/year and drop off your own trash/recycling (need to buy official bags) - a lot cheaper, and kind of a social activity! In Westfield, they have Town curbside pickup.