Now that 2019 is about a month old, I have a question for you. How are you doing on your New Year’s resolutions? Whenever I think of those December 31 commitments that we make for a more positive new year, getting healthy, dropping bad habits and traveling more are a few that come to mind. However, according to a recent report by a major news outlet, one resolution in particular has picked up stamina for 2019: saving money.
In other words, this year Americans are focusing just as much on their financial health as they are on their physical health.
That is music to my ears, because offering our members a great value and teaching them how to get the most for their money is a top priority for Baldwin EMC. That’s not just a New Year’s resolution, either. It’s an all year, every year obligation.
Just how much of a value is electricity? Let’s take a look at the average annual price increases of some common household budget items. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index, the average cost of rent across the United States has risen by 3.5 percent annually from 2012 to 2017. Cable and satellite TV costs are up 3.3 percent annually since 2012, followed closely by education costs, which have increased by 3.0 percent. Groceries like butter, meat and egg costs have been up by more than one to 2 percent annually.
As for electricity, overall across the country we’ve seen an increase of only 1.6 percent per year in the same span of time.
Currently, Baldwin EMC powers your home for around five dollars a day. That five dollars buys you the electricity that heats and cools your house, runs all your kitchen appliances, turns on the TV and computer, charges your cell phone and warms the water for your morning shower, among many other tasks.
Five dollars will barely get you a complete meal at many local fast food restaurants.
Even though electricity is a good value, if your resolution for 2019 was to spend less money, your power bill is one place where you can easily impact change just by making a few changes, such as:
- swap out the bulbs in all your light fixtures from incandescent to LEDs
- start washing your clothes in cold water
- install low-flow faucets and shower heads
- use caulk and weather stripping to seal up air leaks around windows and doors.
As always, if you need more help saving energy in your home, we’re here for you.
Visit our website at www.baldwinemc.com, or call (251) 989-6247 and speak with one of the trained residential energy advisors in our energy services department.