[68vette]

Originally Posted by JessicaB25

My husband was just offered a job in Vermont, and im still not sure the pay is enough. They offered 65K a year. We are a family of 5. I can't seem to find many rentals that accept large dogs either. I'm just frustrated b/c civilian life is so different than the military life i'm use too. I'd like to know about the state/fed taxes... umm electric/gas bills... anything that you may think is helpful to me. I'm from florida(live in Ga, Wa, Hi) so real snow/heating is/will be new to me.

Jess

Is your husbands income going to be your only income? If so, $65,000 is not very much to live and save with a family of 5. I have a family of 5 and there is no way we could get by on that income alone. That would be an outstanding income if it were only 2-3 people. There are a few things to look at. I looked at my paystub at the $65,000 mark. Fed and state taxes alone were close to $20,000 with zero dependents (we always try to get the smallest tax return as possible. The Gov. gives you 0 interest while if we put it in the bank or an investment, we get something back). If you don't have to save for retirement, life will be much easier. If yo do need retirement, that will eat up more of your income. With a family as large as yours, you will also need at least a three bedroom apartment or home which is going to be more than the average rental price. Vermont also lacks the competition many other states have with utilities and services. You can control many of your utilities by use. You can keep the home cooler in the winter and bundle up more, use energy efficient bulbs, etc and turn lights off when you leave a room. Groceries will be the biggest expense outside of rent. We eat a healthy diet and are hard pressed to kep it under $800/month. Summers are better because produce is cheaper, but summer is short northern New England.
Would the job offer be from Vermont Yankee? If so, the state is planning on shutting the plant down in 2011. I coul be way off, but being in Vernon and a good income offer, it sounds almost like Vermont Yankee.

[j_jimerino]

It's doable I think, but you'll have to be careful.

[momnh]

You'll have more deductions given you have 3 children. Try paycheckcity.com to figure out how many allowances to enter. I've found that even though I have two kids, I need to have 6 allowances in order to balance my take home with my tax liability.

I think you'll do fine on $65k, assuming health insurance premiums are reasonable.

[JessicaB25]

Originally Posted by 68vette

Is your husbands income going to be your only income? If so, $65,000 is not very much to live and save with a family of 5. I have a family of 5 and there is no way we could get by on that income alone. That would be an outstanding income if it were only 2-3 people. There are a few things to look at. I looked at my paystub at the $65,000 mark. Fed and state taxes alone were close to $20,000 with zero dependents (we always try to get the smallest tax return as possible. The Gov. gives you 0 interest while if we put it in the bank or an investment, we get something back). If you don't have to save for retirement, life will be much easier. If yo do need retirement, that will eat up more of your income. With a family as large as yours, you will also need at least a three bedroom apartment or home which is going to be more than the average rental price. Vermont also lacks the competition many other states have with utilities and services. You can control many of your utilities by use. You can keep the home cooler in the winter and bundle up more, use energy efficient bulbs, etc and turn lights off when you leave a room. Groceries will be the biggest expense outside of rent. We eat a healthy diet and are hard pressed to kep it under $800/month. Summers are better because produce is cheaper, but summer is short northern New England.
Would the job offer be from Vermont Yankee? If so, the state is planning on shutting the plant down in 2011. I coul be way off, but being in Vernon and a good income offer, it sounds almost like Vermont Yankee.

It is with Vermont Yankee. If they are shutting down next year then why did they just hire 12-14 people?

[JessicaB25]

Right now our bills come too 700 with out food. I also feed 9 people right now on a budget of 130 a week and its all home cooked(no frozen dinners) with fresh veggies. We don't really eat red meat so that cuts our bill down alot. I'm not sure what to think anymore. Maybe i'll send him alone for 6 months and he can see how it is and we'll come up next spring.

[vter]

Jessica....there is a very large possibility that Vermont Yankee's license will NOT be renewed next year. Thus the plant will shut down. I'd suggest you fully research that issue before you guys decide to take the job and move here.

[JessicaB25]

My hubby was told that if its not renewed they will transfer the people. He has to take the job(been with out work for 7 months now theres no turning it down), so we'll just send him for the time being and see what happens. That will be easier on all 5 of us in the long run if the renewal falls through. Thank you for your reply. The information is very helpful to us with being unsure about the move. I'm pretty set on letting him travel alone and get a studio apartment, and finding out how things will work out once his pay starts up, and with the plant its self.

[j_jimerino]

Jessica:

I own a 3 bedroom house built in the 80s, which is kept at 60 during the day and 65 when we are at home. I burn about 800 gallons of fuel oil a year I'd say. Most of it is burned in the winter of course. I just have it budgeted at $4/gallon but I think its like $2.80/gallon or something now. I haven't needed a fill up since like may or so. If you rent an older house...I would expect to pay more as many of them are poorly insulated and/or have older heating systems that may not be as efficient.

My electric bill through CVPS is ~$70/mo. I would say we probably use less power then most people, more than most families. It's still just the two of us for now.

Car insurance is cheaper here then most places. We have clear driving records and full coverage on an 4yr old econobox + liability on a junker costs us $700/yr.

Property taxes are not great. I pay $3500 on a 3 bedroom house in chittenden county. That doesn't seem an unusual price from what I've heard. This is after an income sensitivity rebate. The full amount would be up to $5500 depending on household income.

I don't really know what a house in Vernon that could house 5 children would cost to rent as I'm unfamiliar with the area. If I had to guess I'd say...$1200-1500. I would certainly rent whatever the cost at this juncture though. If the plant closes and you're transfered you'd have to sell a house...in a bad real estate market, in a town that just lost its biggest employer (I think?) and would therefore have a ton of houses on the market. You'd take a bath. In fact, with the current political climate around that plant I wouldn't even plan to buy there.

I don't know where you're from, but food is expensive up here. When I visited so cal I thought food was cheap there. I budget $400/mo for both of us. My wife cooks and uses mostly fresh stuff. I hardly eat beef anymore, mostly turkey burger and chicken. We could and can be probably be a little tighter with this, but I also don't think we usually go over this budget item as well. It's sad to say, but I think I need to budget higher on this just for the two of us...and I have a baby on the way now.

Hopefully that gives you some ideas.

[arctichomesteader]

The plant can't be instantly shut down, and furthermore, the state actually has no power over its license, to be truthful. That anti-Yankee vote was just political grandstanding. The feds have the final say. The fact is New England needs the power from VT Yankee. Begging Canada for overpriced power is not a solution and will make the power supply up here less reliable. I'm almost willing to wager the license will be renewed, at least, for a time while something else is worked out.

And, 65K is more than enough for a family of 5. My family did fine off a state job's pay of less than that. You'll also be making more than twice what most VT'ers make from private sector jobs.

[RunawayJim]

Originally Posted by j_jimerino

Car insurance is cheaper here then most places. We have clear driving records and full coverage on an 4yr old econobox + liability on a junker costs us $700/yr.

I just wanna say WOW! The savings in car insurance and lack of a yearly car tax alone makes up for the higher cost of living, at least when compared with RI. My wife and I have an 08 Outback and it's the only car we have with full coverage and my premium is about $1600/year, which is why we only have 1 car. My yearly taxes on it are about $1000 in Providence.