Monthly expenses: Utility Bills etc

Another info session on living in Melbourne, for those of you planning to come too. This should assist a little with your monthly estimates =) Utilities here are quite reasonable, we're happy with it... for anyone trying to estimate how much you need a month on utilities, this is generally how much we spend (but of course it will be different for everyone... not to mention, it may differ for different seasons... and its winter now)

Electricity:
Our electric bill came yesterday (we're billed quarterly), so for the past 3 months, it cost just under $250... which averages to slightly over $80 per month. not too bad! We're only in the house on weekday evenings and weekends, though. Things we have running on electricity include laptops, TV, fridge, dishwasher, oven, microwave, washing machine, dryer etc. We're with AGL for electricity and gas, but there's alot of energy provides here... some are listed in http://www.artog.com.au/ArtogUtilities/providerList.aspx but there are still others like TRUenergy, which I didn't see on the list.

Gas:
The gas bill comes every alternate month, I think... and our last one cost approximately $30 per month.
Things running on gas includes the stove and central (gas ducted) heating

Water:
To be updated after we get a bill... haven't received any from May til now. At Coburg, if we remember correctly, it was about $30-40 per month. hmm... what was the organization called?

Telephone:
Generally less than $50, depending on whether we use it or not. The monthly fixed cost (line rental) is about $26. We're with Telstra, but I believe you can choose to go with Optus or some others too.

Internet:
We're with TPG, on the $69.90 package for ADSL 2+ with a capping of 40GB daytime use and 110GB midnight use (3am-9am) per month. do note there are cheaper packages with TPG / Telstra / Optus ... there are alot of broadband providers here. If you're looking for one, check http://broadbandguide.com.au/

Foxtel (cable/satellite tv):
well, this is not a utility, but its something we spend on monthly... We're not on the full package so its about $60 for the basic package + the package that playhouse Disney belongs to. Full package would cost about $105 I believe.

Mobile Phone:
We're with Vodaphone, on a prepaid package. We usually top up $49 monthly, which gives us $310 (sometimes $330-$350 depending on the promo). Mobile phone providers here include Telstra, Vodaphone, Optus, 3 and Virgin Mobile.