Balance month on budget billing from gas/electric co.

[disneysteve]

We just got the annual balance bill from our gas/electric company. We've been paying $194.00/month for the past year. The final bill of the cycle had us owing $66.54 over what we had paid in. Not bad at all. Now I'm just waiting to see what they reset the monthly amount at. In past years, they've tended to over correct and raise the monthly bill too much, which I've called and adjusted.

[Scanner]

I don't do budget billing but every July and February I think that I should.

[jmjj215]

Yeah we did budget billing at $126/month and then the final settlement was $340!

We were bummed. We're not doing it again b/c I think it makes us pay less attention to electricity consumption (which I also think is a reason the utilities companies are jumping on the bandwagon with it).

[disneysteve]

Yeah we did budget billing at $126/month and then the final settlement was $340!

The way it works with our company, I believe, is that they re-evaluate your usage after 6 months and adjust the budget amount if you are significantly over or under.

I know from experience that you can also call and ask them to change the monthly amount. I did that a couple of years ago. We had actually come in nearly $200 under the budget and they went and raised the monthly amount for the new year. I called and said that made no sense and they asked me how much I'd like it to be. I told them and that's what they set it at.

[Aleta]

Steve: I add up the total past years bill and divide it by 12 and I set that money to the side every month. At the end of the month, I transfer any money left over from any of my allocated payments to the account where I keep my irregular bills (Money Market Account). I like keeping track of my bills and that way, I can adjust higher if I need to.

[pearlieq]

We were bummed. We're not doing it again b/c I think it makes us pay less attention to electricity consumption (which I also think is a reason the utilities companies are jumping on the bandwagon with it).

I agree completely and that's part of the reason we don't do it.

We pay for gas and electric, and when one is up the other is down, so what I do is just budget a lump for both of them together each much and allocate is as need be. It's amazing how static our energy costs are across the year.

I guess that's the joy of living in Chicago. With the exception of about 4 weeks in the spring and fall, if you're not heating you're cooling! And sometimes you're doing both in the same day!

[disneysteve]

I got the notice today for the new amount: $205. That's reasonable IMO.

I think we pay just as much attention to our usage with the budget plan. And I don't think the company does it to discourage conservation. I think they do it for cashflow reasons.

[Scanner]

April and September are beautiful months for utility bills in S. Jersey, especially Sept.

I am switching to those new fangled lightbulbs now to save on electric, along with getting outlet strips for the TV and computer and turning them off when not in use.

I read somewhere that the TV draws 10% of your electric, even when off, which makes sense when you consider the voltage inside a TV.

I'd like to go solar eventually as NJ has a great solar rebate program.

[katwoman]

I'm in the Chicago suburbs and have been on budget billing for 4 years now. Both gas and electric.

Gas gets reset every quarter. For this quarter (summer, mind you) I'm paying $381/mn. Yup, you read right! Of course, I called and was told the usual - big increase in gas prices to come and you wouldn't want to be paying those high bills in the winter months now would you?

I hate the utilities.

DS is absolutely right - it's all about cash flow.

[Daylily]

I love having my utilities on a budget plan. I don't think it causes overconsumption. I look at my electric bill every month and compare the 'energy costs billed to date' vs. 'energy costs paid to date'. My electric is $83.00/month and my propane is $55/month.

The propane is for heating and cooking. Yep - I pay ~$600 a year to heat my house in the frigid midwest. I know people who pay nearly that much in a month. I need to find ways to reduce the electric.

[disneysteve]

I don't think it causes overconsumption.

Regarding consumption, I don't even look at the price, because that can vary. What I look at is the actual usage in kilowatt hours. Our bill gives a graph and a chart with last year's info compared to this year's. If I see that our usage has increased, I try and think about why that might be and if it is something we could correct. I would do the exact same thing whether we were on the budget plan or not.

[boefixepa]

See, I don't think the gas or the electric company derseve my money before they earn it. I have a good enough system I can do the balance my self and EARN SOME INTERST on my money and still go with the ebb and flow of the season.

The $381 a month for the gas in the summer!!!! That's ALOT of money for work they have yet to do. I'd rather sit that money aside for myself in an online account earning over 5% and then take it out to pay the big bills when they come!!! What do you think they are doing with it? The exact same thing! and they don't give you credit for the interest they earn waiting to spend it!

I looked at bills, not balanced over the course of the year, took the average, added a little for increased costs and then started putting that away in the off months to build up the buffer. Every once in a while I re-evaulted to make sure I stay on track...usually I over estimate. But the money AND THE INTEREST stay in my pocket and my control.

Now having said that, if you can't keep your hands out of the cookie jar, give it to the utility companies!

[PrincessPerky]

Ditto Boe...while not earning interest it is going to reduce interest...though I do make sure having enough for the higher months is a priority in the budget...like she said, if you can't keep your fingers out of the cookie jar, send it to the company.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I do budget, I can't afford to not. Our winter heating bills are too outragous of like $600-800/month that I couldn't afford it. Our neighbors pay monthly and they were seriously hurting. They didn't expect the huge bills.

And yes part of it is our consumption, but we live in an old house and prices are expensive here. Super expensive because for electric we use an average of 600 kwh and pay $200/month. Then for gas we use about 100 therms and we pay $500-600/month.

[disneysteve]

I do budget, I can't afford to not. Our winter heating bills are too outragous of like $600-800/month that I couldn't afford it.

The point boefixepa is making, which I certainly understand, is that you can afford it if you plan for it properly. Add up your bills for the past year and divide by 12 to get the monthly average. Each month that your actual bill is less than that average, take the difference and put it in your savings account. Each month that your bill is more than the average, use the savings account to make up the difference. So if your average bill is $500, in a month with a $350 bill, you'd pay the bill plus put $150 into your savings account. In the month that the bill was $650, you'd pay the bill from your usual funds plus $150 that you withdraw from the savings account. It would all balance out in the end.