average utility prices on a house? (Cary: apartments, renting, how much)

[jersey86]

im moving into a 1700sqft house next week with 2 people (renting), and ive always lived in apartments, so not sure what to expect as far as utility prices on a house.

how much does trash pick-up in cary cost?

what is your average monthly water bill? water is included in my current apartment, but my first apartment in raleigh, i had to pay for water, and i think it was maybe $20/mth? maybe less. i forget. but i also lived by myself and didnt have a W&D.

if your house is 1700sqft (give or take 100sqft), how much is your average electric bill? what temperature do you keep your house at in the summer/winter? do window AC units and space heaters cut down on the electric cost?

any help appreciated! =)

[dedratermi]

Well it all depends on what you set your thermostat to, read the "electric bill" thread. If you like to live in a sauna at 73 degrees in the winter, then your bill will be $400. Or you can wear long clothes and sleep under blankets then your bill will be around $125-150. It's impossible to be more specific, it all depends on what you set your thermostat to and what kind of heat is in the house. In general, window A/C units and space heaters cost more than central heat & air.

In Cary your water bill will probably be around $60 and this includes trash & recycling pickup.

[3DogNight]

I can only compare vs. Fuquay..but here goes:

1640 sq ft house was built in 2002; heat pack was gas heat in winter, electric cooling in summer so the bill flung wildly for a couple of months on the inbetween times like Sept-Nov or March-June when the windows open is fine for us. During the summer gas dropped to $10/mo and electric could go as high as $100/mo, on the flip side heat seemed to work harder in winter when the bills reversed themselves and gas came in at $100-140/mo and electric dropped to $50/mo.

Heat is set to 65 at night and while no one is home (most of the day). (2) two hour bursts of heat in the morning while getting ready for work and at night before bed of 67 degrees.

Cooling is set on 75 during the day and 70 at night, same as above for times set. Sometimes cooling is dropped to 68 because if I wake up sweating it drives me bonkers.

Garbage, recycling and water are lumped in FV -- $65 was an average month usage for 2 people, roughly 2000 gallons.

[lupus]

Asking how much it costs to heat a house is like asking what's the best kind of bbq.

A well insulated house with an efficient heat pump will cost much less than a poorly insulated home with gas heat or an old furnace. My parents are in a house the same size as their last one and the current one costs 4x as much to heat.