SmallShinyAnt

Hi All,
background - Just been offered the opportunity for a role in the American office of the company I work for. I am married with no kids.

The office is in Annapolis and I am currently considering renting a house within 45min commuting distance for about $1500 a month. One thing(Of so so many) i am having trouble getting a good estimate on is household/living costs.
How much does it cost to live in Maryland?
What are the monthly things and how much do they cost. I understand that you have to pay for Rubbish collection separately what other things like this are there that i might not of thought of? Or does it vary so much that any estimate is useless without knowing the exact location?

Time to build a spreadsheet!

Stabilo_Boss

Sorry I can't directly answer your question, but remember that life is an adventure: what would you and your wife be gaining in terms of 1) a great experience and 2) possible career development.

Of course you don't want to be screwed over on cost of living and hopefully some folks here will be able to help answer that aspect of your question. Make sure to research healthcare and the extent that your employer covers that.

SmallShinyAnt

Thanks for the reply. We are really looking forward to it as an opportunity. I just want to make sure all my ducks are lined up and get a good understanding of what i need to get out of my employer.

Bob

I'd start looking at the job sites like salary.com and glassdoor.com to see how the offer compares.

Also city-data.com is a good start if you search out a particular town.

I've no idea rental costs down there, but if you can get a house, not in a shit hole, for $1500 a month then that's awesome!

The wiki, as mentioned in another thread is a good starting point though on costs.

Rough ball park figure on things, which obviously depend on location, type of housing etc.

Cable/Phone/Internet $100-150 month
Mobile Phone $45 (PAYG), $50-100 otherwise
Heat - depends if it's gas, oil or electric and can range from $60-600 a month depending on type and time of year. Lower end for gas/summer, higher for oil
Electric - $60-400 a month, depends if you use a lot of AC in the summer etc
Car insurance $2K a year
Medical insurance can be free or $1500 a month and anywhere in between, really depends on what the company offer.

Rubbish collection, might be included in the rent, it might also be done by the town so no extra cost to you or you might have to use a town dump or a private rubbish collector and that would be $30-60 a month depending on how much rubbish and if recycling is separate.

Thing to consider is deposits. You'll have no US credit history and no US driving history, so budget between $50-600 for a deposit for every utility just in case and be happy if you don't need it because some might not but it's usually a combo of some kind of deposit, on everything.

Check out the state DMV on what you need to do to get a state license, but budget cost of car; sales tax on the car, title/registration/plate, excise/property tax, theory+practical tests, license and emissions/inspection as car start up costs and chances are you'll need one, probably two cars depending on location.

SmallShinyAnt

Hi Bob,
Thanks for the info. The data websites are really good. city-data.com has loads of info i have no idea what to do with yet.
I'm only working on what i can find on Zillow for rentals prices at the moment. I am still unsure about areas and what is good or bad.
Thanks for the info about utility companies needing deposit i had not even thought about that thought of thing.. Added to the list.

Still reading through the wiki. Very helpful.

Bob

madmapper.com is probably a better site for rentals. Can search out area, type, subs/short term or proper leases etc and it'll mark which ones you've already looked at and point you to where they were listed and when.

SmallShinyAnt

Thanks (After a false start i think you meant padmapper.com)
Its really good.

Bob

Yes, even...autocorrect in the middle of a url does strange things when you're not paying attention

I'd get the mobile app if you're out there doing any street pounding as it's really quite handy too.

penguinsix

Given the expensive housing costs, most of the other things like garbage or cable TV will be essentially rounding errors between different neighbourhoods / cities. What things cost will vary by city a few dollars here and there but not so significantly to make the savings on these services negate the larger price differences on housing.

Annapolis is the bottom corner of a triangle with Baltimore and Washington DC. To the west, the closer you get to DC, the more expensive the housing prices are as you interact with DC commuters, and to the North you have a few suburbs that split commuters to DC or Annapolis, with the associated expenses of a big city.

What kind of lifestyle are you seeking? If you want an urban environment, are you looking at DC or Baltimore proper? Annapolis is quite a nice little city with a historic central area and an expanding periphery, but it can be quite expensive.

South of Annapolis is very rural, with small fishing towns and not much else. It's also gets quite a bit cheaper, but as a married couple with no kids you might not find the nightlife you desire. Areas like Southern Anne Arundel and Northern Calvert counties are very popular with young families seeking a big house and good schools.

So basically, what kind of city do you want?

SmallShinyAnt

Thanks for the replies. Re-visiting all the info as things move closer now. Fingers crossed for a July move