We all know how much our utility bills have gone up in 2024. We have been looking at ours so that we can set our budget for next year. Our total utility bills for natural gas and electricity for the past 12 months was $2187.52. That is quite a chunk of change. The 12 month period prior to that was $ 1871.59. So the past 12 months was up $ 315.93. It would have been much higher if we hadn’t done what we could to conserve.
We would like to get that total back under $2000. or lower for 2025. Will rates keep going up? Probably especially in New York. National Grid which is one of the utility companies out here has asked the regulatory agency for a 20% rate increase in natural gas and a 15% rate increase in electricity rates for April 2025. People are turning out in droves at their public hearings against this. But I doubt that will do any good. Governor Hochul just signed a bill that states when the utility increases their rates with the approval of the regulatory commission, the utility company must tell the public why and what they are spending it on. Now tell me how that is going to help the people. She says there is HEAP money for low income people in the state but it does not pay much and is only a one time amount. I am watching this closely because our utility company will follow suit with a rate increase request.
So knowing all of that, we still want to get our yearly bill under $2,000. or less. We will be doing everything we can to get there even if we have to go without A/C or at least use it less often. It is very hard to go without heat because of the brutal cold temperatures, snow and winds here. Our heat has been running constantly lately except for at night because we bump the temperature down to 65. We have to try to keep Eloise warm so we will not go down any further. It does run a few times at night to keep the temperature of 65 steady.
We will grill food outside when the weather permits over the winter. Otherwise, we will use our small countertop oven instead of our large gas oven. We will also use our small appliances like our instant pot, slow cooker, etc. to save on costs.
We already have a gas tankless hot water heater which is cheaper than heating a hot water tank all of the time. We don’t run hot water down the drain in the kitchen sink. We use a small dishpan of soapy water for anything that does not go in the dishwasher. We do the same with rinse water. I didn’t think this would make a difference but I believe it does. I just switched to this method a couple of months ago.
By running errands and doing appointments( combined like we did so that I could get 6 tests for my back done this week), we don’t go in and out of the house as often opening and closing outside doors. We usually use the door to the garage and don’t open the garage door until the other one is shut. We do the reverse when we come home. We do have to get our mail down at the end of the driveway. The mailman’s truck is so noisy that I can usually watch him to see if he even leaves mail instead of going outside to find there is none. We only get mail about 3 times a week and it is usually junk. We do get the mail combined with our trips out to run errands. The only other time we go out is to put the garbage cans out and bring them back in.
We also will be using online ordering and Walmart delivery as much as we can over the winter to avoid trips out which will also save us on gasoline.
Every way that we have learned over the years will be used to cut down on these bills. The utility company gives us a report each month comparing our home to other homes in our area. They use 1500- 2100 sq. ft. homes to do this. Our home is 2112 sq. ft. so this does not really give us a fair comparison. We are usually over the average amount for gas and electric. Plus most homes in our area do not have 9 ft. ceilings and 2 cathedral ceilings like we do. However, that said we are not usually much over the average. And matter of fact we were under this past month. That is what I aim for.
Are you now in December working on your budgets for 2025 to see where you can cut?
2 replies on “Utility Budget For 2025”
Hi Precious. Our utility bill is almost always less than a similar size house, per our utility company. So we will take it. I think your night time temp is good. Eloise is still young and kittens are susceptible to respiratory infections, as you know. Our town has started a new electric program that we opted into to hopefully have lower rates. It started the first of this month. Of course, the intro rate adjusts the end of June, just in time for AC season. LOL!
Our internet bill had been creeping up in recent years and Hubby tried to get the rate down, but Spectrum wouldn’t budge, so we went with a competitor and are saving almost half what we were paying for the next 2 years. Cha-Ching! He also called the newspaper and got the rate reduced by $5/mo. Every little bit helps.
We are working on finances for next year and things are still unsure with Hubby continuing to work part time. It is hard having a variable income that you are not sure what it will be, even if it is a good problem to have. Just have to trust things will work out.
Hi Chris,
I hope the new electric program saves you some money. Nice on the change away from Spectrum. We have no competitors here so pay $220. a month for internet,, cable and home telephone service. It’s rediculous but Hubby enjoys it all. I know you guys are nervous but you are smart and will do well.