Just What We Need: Even Higher Energy Bills

Get ready for even higher energy bills in Southern Nevada to start the New Year.

Inflation has hit just about every sector of our economy over the past year. Now, the price of natural gas continues to drive up the cost of providing electricity and gas to our homes. I hate to start off the New Year with bad news, but facts are facts, and we need to be prepared.

According to an article written by Shakeria Hawkins on KTNV.com, your utility bills from NV Energy and Southwest Gas may look a little different this month. That is because these companies are raising their rates a whopping 14%! They had already raised rates in October 2022 by 6%. Add them together and we have seen a 20% increase in energy costs for our homes in Southern Nevada in the past four months. Did you get a raise in the past four months? I did not either.

Per Hawkins' article on KTNV.com, Jennifer Schuricht, NV Energy's Director of Communications, says the company does not make a profit off of these rate hikes. She explained how NV Energy determines energy rates: "The company first assesses its quarterly costs and then changes the pay rate to recover losses and keep up with rising prices."

Schuricht went on to say, "The cost of that rate is really the reflection of the actual cost of what we paid for fuel. So as soon as we see that cost go down that decrease will be passed down to our customers as well."

If you need help paying your energy bills, you can CLICK HERE for more information.

Let’s be friends! 👍 Follow us on all social media platforms:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kklz963

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kklz963/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kklz963/

Larry Martino is the long-time Afternoon Drive personality on 96.3 KKLZ. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of Larry Martino and not necessarily those of Beasley Media Group, LLC.

A recent study released by TheZebra.com  cites the top U.S. cities for home ownership, and Las Vegas ranks right near the top!

According to an article posted by Susan Meyer on the TheZebra.com website, the study was conducted for the nation's fifty most populous cities. Researchers based their rankings on three different metrics:

The Las Vegas housing market has cooled off since the second quarter of 2022, but our fair city did make it into the top 5 on this list. In fact, four of the top 5 housing markets on these rankings are located west of the Mississippi. Per Meyer's article, the Las Vegas market saw housing prices jump up a whopping 24.5% in that 12-month period of this survey.

Here are the Top 5 cities on TheZebra.com on their list of the best cities in the United States for homeowners in 2022.

Let’s be friends! 👍 Follow us on all social media platforms:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kklz963

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kklz963/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kklz963/

Larry Martino is the long-time Afternoon Drive personality on 96.3 KKLZ. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of Larry Martino and not necessarily those of Beasley Media Group, LLC.

Seattle home prices did not rise as much as they did in Las Vegas, settling in at a 14.4% annual home price increase. There is a good number of available contractors in the area, and the home insurance costs averaged around $878 per year, placing them fifth in this survey.

In fourth place in the rankings, Pittsburgh has a very high concentration of contractors available for home improvement projects. Home values rose by 13.5% between second quarter 2021 and second quarter 2022. Homeowners insurance costs averaged just over $1,000 per year, adding about $83 per month to your mortgage payment.

Our desert neighbors in Phoenix placed third on TheZebra.com list. Although homeowners insurance is a bit higher in that region, averaging $1,410 per year, home values increased 21.7% during that 12-month period. The city also boasts a healthy concentration of contractors for home improvement projects.

Here in Las Vegas, home values increased 24.5% between second quarter 2021 and second quarter 2022, with homeowners insurance remaining relatively low, at an average clip of $841 dollars per year. That adds about $67 dollars a month to our mortgage payments. Plus, contractor availability is fairly strong here in Southern Nevada. We took the runner-up spot.

About six hours away on I-15 North, we make a pit-stop in Salt Lake City, Utah, the winner of this particular survey. Plus, this city boasts the highest concentration of contractors in the survey, which makes getting competitive bids much easier for home makeover projects. SLC also has one of the lowest homeowners insurance rates in the nation, averaging about $740 a year.