this much for utilities!?!?

[TheLonelyPoet]

I just moved out of home. I rent a small apartment with a couple of people. The electricity/gas bill came in today and it is over $650 !!!

 

Is this normal? We live in a small apartment (east coast... energy provdied by PSNG)

 

If I'm not mistaken my parents pay about the same for a large size centrally conditioned house. W-T-F?

 

My roomates aren't the most energy-saving people... but this is beyond ridiculous to me.

[TheSmilingTurnip]

I just moved out of home. I rent a small apartment with a couple of people. The electricity/gas bill came in today and it is over $650 !!!

 

Is this normal? We live in a small apartment (east coast... energy provdied by PSNG)

 

If I'm not mistaken my parents pay about the same for a large size centrally conditioned house. W-T-F?

 

My roomates aren't the most energy-saving people... but this is beyond ridiculous to me.

 

It's crazy, youd better call the company and see what the source of that humongous bill is. Perhaps bills from previous months? A deposit billed into the first month's?

[TheLonelyPoet]

Thanks for responding? So what do you think a normal bill should look like? About how much?

 

Like I said. My roomates don't really get energy conservation. AC is used very often, the light in the hall is left overnight, and my roomates' 2 computers are always on. But that's about all the abuse I can think of.

 

Can someone please provide me a sensible range?

[annie24]

depends on where you live, how big your place is, etc..... i have a 1 bedroom place, i live alone, i turn my computer off when i'm not home and i turn off the AC too, and my AC is set at 75F.... and i got over a $100 bill this month! the price of gas has gone up.

 

how much do you guys pay normally? maybe the guy reading the meter made a mistake?

 

oooh, since you say this is your first month in the apartment, maybe find out what your neighbors pay..... perhaps the account reflects something that the previous tenants didn't pay?

[TheLonelyPoet]

depends on where you live, how big your place is, etc..... i have a 1 bedroom place, i live alone, i turn my computer off when i'm not home and i turn off the AC too, and my AC is set at 75F.... and i got over a $100 bill this month! the price of gas has gone up.

 

The place is a 3bdrm with a common area and kitchen, and bathroom. Not big at all. There are 4 AC wall units in the house, 3 of which are sadly not used too wisely (the one in my room is). Like i said, 2 computers are left on all the time. Also sometimes lights are left on. Could all of this account to $650? God, i hope this is a mistake

 

If not, I really need to start teaching my roomates about the "magic" of saving energy.

[annie24]

do you guys have the AC running 24/7? what temperature are you setting it at? that can make a big difference. and are your windows open when you are running the AC?

[TheLonelyPoet]

do you guys have the AC running 24/7? what temperature are you setting it at? that can make a big difference. and are your windows open when you are running the AC?

 

I saw days when the AC's in their rooms are on about 24/7 (but I don't know for sure, its not like I monitor their rooms). Also the temp. is on "very cool" or whatever. Their units don't have temp readings.

 

Mine is usually on 73 in a power saver mode. and it is only on when I'm in the room (which is only 2-9h every 24h)

 

The windows are closed (thank god they are not that _______ stupid).

[annie24]

i would call the electric company, but it's very possible that the bill is for real! i'd talk to your roommates about being more energy (and money) efficient! like setting your thermostat at 78 (or at the least, the 'warmest' setting on the AC), and turning it off when they aren't at home. like i said, i pay $100 a month for a 1 bedroom, and my AC runs 12 hours a day or so, so it's entirely possible if i ran it 24/7 that i would have a bill near $200, especially if i was leaving all the lights on, etc....

[luvs2kayak]

Your local utility company might offer a free energy audit. You might want to take advantage of that to see what's really going on. That seems like an outrageous bill, even considering the cost of air conditioners. I have a fairly big house and my summer bills are about $200 at most.

[TheLonelyPoet]

OK so I guess the general consensus is that the $650 bill is either impossible or rather unlikely.

 

In any case, mistake or not... I need to confront my roommates about it.

 

Will keep posted.

[Angel_baby]

Wow! That is high! I pay $400-500 a month in the WINTER. Summertime I only pay $130-150. And I have a medium sized house!

 

I would call the electric company also in addition to talking to your roommates.

[Anonymous122]

No, 650 isn't unreasonable at all with 3 AC units running 24/7.

 

I keep the AC in my bedroom on the coldest setting 24/7, and my bill has gone up by $120.00 this summer because of it.

 

With 3 AC units running 24/7, one running most of the time, and other minor abuses... 650 seems extremely reasonable.

[Stars_n_Guitars]

is there a deposit that you are having to pay? and it's added?

[Stars_n_Guitars]

The place is a 3bdrm with a common area and kitchen, and bathroom. Not big at all. There are 4 AC wall units in the house, 3 of which are sadly not used too wisely (the one in my room is). Like i said, 2 computers are left on all the time. Also sometimes lights are left on. Could all of this account to $650? God, i hope this is a mistake

 

If not, I really need to start teaching my roomates about the "magic" of saving energy.

 

there is absolutely no reason for someone to leave computers/lights/ac's on all the time!!!

[Anthropic]

I think the ac is what's killing you. I'm utterly shocked at what people are paying for energy though. I guess I'm lucky to live in a place that doesn't require ac, so my energy usage is really low in comparison. I pay about $17 CAD a month, for a 1 bedroom place.

 

Running a computer 24/7 doesn't actually cost all that much, especially compared to running ac. Not saying it's a good idea to keep it on though.

[pianoguy]

I don't think your bill should be that high- my electric runs about $50 in the winter, maybe $100 in the summer, and I live in one of the most expensive cities in the country. My guess is that there is a bill there from a previous tenant.

 

Also, be careful with the a/c. I only use the a/c at night when I'm sleeping. On nights when it is not so hot I just use the fan. You can get by with very little a/c if you condition yourself to it, depending on where you live.

[TheLonelyPoet]

Yes thanks for the tips ladies and gents. However, the problem isn't really me. I am rather responsible with energy usage. I only use AC on high-temp days, and only when I'm actually spending time in the room. Plus my AC saves energy by turning on and off as needed when in use. That is... it doesn't just keep cooling and cooling like the other ones.

 

The abuses come from my new roomates. However, in a way such use of energy is their 'lifestyle' and I don't know if I have any rights to tell them how to behave.

[annie24]

did you call the company and make sure that the bill is accurate? that's the first thing i would do.

[karvala]

I just moved out of home. I rent a small apartment with a couple of people. The electricity/gas bill came in today and it is over $650 !!!

 

Is this normal? We live in a small apartment (east coast... energy provdied by PSNG)

 

You don't say what period the bill is for, and how long you've been there. Some places, and some companies, bill quarterly rather than monthly, in which case that's perfectly plausible. Some other companies (especially here in the UK) bill at seemingly random intervals.

 

If the bill is for one month, and for one three-bedroom place, then it does somewhat excessive. In that case, look to see whether or not it's based on estimated usage or actually metered usage which has been read, and similarly for the previous reading. Often after a period of underestimation, an actual reading can result in a large bill as the underestimation is corrected. In that case, you'll need to negotiate with your roomates as to how much you should pay if you're relatively new there, otherwise you'll be overpaying.

[pinkelephant]

You don't say what period the bill is for, and how long you've been there. Some places, and some companies, bill quarterly rather than monthly, in which case that's perfectly plausible. Some other companies (especially here in the UK) bill at seemingly random intervals.

 

If the bill is for one month, and for one three-bedroom place, then it does somewhat excessive. In that case, look to see whether or not it's based on estimated usage or actually metered usage which has been read, and similarly for the previous reading. Often after a period of underestimation, an actual reading can result in a large bill as the underestimation is corrected. In that case, you'll need to negotiate with your roomates as to how much you should pay if you're relatively new there, otherwise you'll be overpaying.

 

Yea, I thought this may be every 3 months. Even then, it's kinda expensive.

[BeStrongBeHappy]

Poet, the best thing to do is call the utility company and tell them the bill is really high, and could they check the monthly costs for the prior tenants. Usually the difference between the prior tenants and current tenants shouldn't be that great.

 

That is a very high bill, more on the order of a really large house. So something is wrong. There is a chance that you are paying for more than one apt's worth of power, or they've sent two month's worth of bills.

 

So just get them to verify what the charges were for that same apt. over time.

[pinkelephant]

oh btw, did you just move in?

 

because when my mom and i just recently moved into this house.. we had to pay for the people that lived here before's utility bill. that was annoying.

[karvala]

oh btw, did you just move in?

 

because when my mom and i just recently moved into this house.. we had to pay for the people that lived here before's utility bill. that was annoying.

 

Why? I don't know what the situation is in Canada, but by law in the UK that is prohibited. You tell the utility company the meter reading when you move in, and the date, and you are billed only from that point onwards. It's up to the company to pursue the previous people for the remaining bill; they can't try to get it from you just because you happen to live there afterwards. You're not liable for it.

[pinkelephant]

Why? I don't know what the situation is in Canada, but by law in the UK that is prohibited. You tell the utility company the meter reading when you move in, and the date, and you are billed only from that point onwards. It's up to the company to pursue the previous people for the remaining bill; they can't try to get it from you just because you happen to live there afterwards. You're not liable for it.

 

it depends on your arrangement with your lawyer. we got it cleared up, but initially it was a shock as well.