[RunawayJim]

I know this is pretty vague, but I have been considering a move to Vermont now and am trying to figure out how much the cost of living is. I know people always whine about the high cost of living, but I currently live in RI, which has a pretty high cost of living.

Can anyone give me the cost per kWh for electricity, the average heating cost, insurance, etc? To help, I'm considering moving to the Burlington area.

It seems as though property taxes are a little higher than they are for my home in Providence, but homeowner's insurance is quite a bit less from what I've read. The VT income tax is about the same as it is in RI.

Also, I can't find anything on a motor vehicle excise tax for any of the towns and cities of VT. Is this a local tax, a state tax, or non-existent? The only thing I found was the purchase and use tax from the state DMV. Is that a yearly tax or just for buying a car?

[vter]

No yearly tax on your car. Just registration and inspection fees. I'll let others chime in on the rest.

[jackmccullough]

Here's a link to the fuel price report compiled monthly by the Public Service Department:

VT Fuel Price Report : Vermont Department of Public Service

As you can see, it addresses the costs of the major household fuels, even wood and coal. I think we're paying about $0.14 per kilowatt hour for electricity right now.

I don't know if there is a comparable resource in Rhode Island. I suspect that you will find that heating costs tend to be higher because the winters are colder, but that you are unlikely to incur substantial, if any, cooling costs.

One factor that you don't mention at all is housing costs, which can be highly variable within Vermont. Probably higher in the Burlington area than the rest of the state, but again, I don't know how our housing costs compare to those in RI.

I hope this helps.

[RunawayJim]

That does help quite a bit. Housing costs are the easy one to find. Just look on any real estate site. The Burlington area is comparable to Providence, though we really lucked out with the house we bought down here and got a great deal. The main reason they're so low here is because of all the foreclosures. I don't know if VT was hit as hard with foreclosures as RI, but in general, the prices are comparable.

While we had an unseasonably cold summer here, we ran a single window AC unit in the evenings or overnight for about 4 weeks. I think while the days can get just as warm up there, the nights are cooler, which is what matters most to us (nothing worse than sleeping in 90 degree weather with 80% humidity).

[Sherylcatmom]

Originally Posted by RunawayJim

While we had an unseasonably cold summer here, we ran a single window AC unit in the evenings or overnight for about 4 weeks. I think while the days can get just as warm up there, the nights are cooler, which is what matters most to us (nothing worse than sleeping in 90 degree weather with 80% humidity).

Tonight is one of those nights for us. Bleah. Without the AC, we'd be sweating in damp sheets.

[RunawayJim]

Must be like that for all of New England. We've had nice dry weather down here and now it's humid again. You haven't slept in a damp bed until you've slept in Narragansett, RI in August.

[68vette]

You should also look into what the same job will pay in Vt vs where you are now. Just looking at the Census Bureau info that came out this week, the median incomes for the Southern New England states range from 10-20,000 more per year. I belive R.I. was the only state outside of Maine in New England that was close to Vermont.

[RunawayJim]

Yeah... RI's salaries are not in line with CT or MA even though our cost of living is similar. RI's economy is similar to VT in that it is very much based on tourism. Lots of service jobs and blue collar work here, even with the presence of an Ivy League university.

[BickleTravis]

Originally Posted by RunawayJim

I know this is pretty vague, but I have been considering a move to Vermont now and am trying to figure out how much the cost of living is. I know people always whine about the high cost of living, but I currently live in RI, which has a pretty high cost of living.

Can anyone give me the cost per kWh for electricity, the average heating cost, insurance, etc? To help, I'm considering moving to the Burlington area.

It seems as though property taxes are a little higher than they are for my home in Providence, but homeowner's insurance is quite a bit less from what I've read. The VT income tax is about the same as it is in RI.

Also, I can't find anything on a motor vehicle excise tax for any of the towns and cities of VT. Is this a local tax, a state tax, or non-existent? The only thing I found was the purchase and use tax from the state DMV. Is that a yearly tax or just for buying a car?

Let me guess... VT is the home of Phish, so you want to come here and live in a hippie paradise?

[RunawayJim]

Originally Posted by BickleTravis

Let me guess... VT is the home of Phish, so you want to come here and live in a hippie paradise?

It's been one of my favorite places since I was a kid before I even knew Phish existed (which was before they were known outside Vermont).