<p>My auto and home are with Geico so is umbrella. I think I get a bundled rate.</p>
<p>You can get umbrella coverage through a group (mine is through AICPA) – I think it is about 400 for 3Million of coverage.</p>
<p>ebee, the wonderful woman who worked for me for 14 years recently left the area as her husband lost his job, so I really dont have much of relationship, other than cordial, with new person. Dont know what i would do if the old person was still here.</p>
<p>I think I’m just going to ask her. If she really needs the weekly income we will keep it weekly but when the youngest leaves in Sept. we will have one bath that is virtually unused and of course some other rooms like the Dining Room that have been used about once a year for the past 20!</p>
<p>Lucy55: We have only Auto and Umbrella with Geico.</p>
<p>Ebee, if you know any families new to the neighborhood, you could try and ask if they need someone – or at least give your person a lot of notice.</p>
<p>D will no longer be doing competitive dance. Cost of classes, travel, competition fees, costumes runs about 5-6K per year. (H doesn’t know it’s that much, none of the Dad’s do!).</p>
<p>Alas, no savings on food. H has taken to wanting to eat out about once a week. Delicious but not money-saving.
We’re saving on hot water, however.</p>
<p>Almost forgot – daughter ditched her boyfriend a month or so after she started college. The one we had been feeding all summer. Her new SO lives far away. Haven’t calculated the savings but it’s got to be something.</p>
<p>We pay our “household bills” out of a different account so it’s very easy for us to see the difference in costs when our kids are NOT here. Electric bill alone is about $75 less per month when they are not here (think showers, washing, drying clothes, lights on, computers on all the time, tv, etc). Our food bill is $250 or so a month less when they are not here (less food and virtually NO snack foods). We also save on auto insurance for two kids…and the gasoline costs as well (they seem to use a LOT more gas in the cars than we do!).</p>
<p>S2 has his truck at school. Our auto insurance bill recently decreased by $70/month because S2 turned 19. In our state there is a higher premium for the first three years of driving due to inexperience. Once they turn 19 with no accidents, the premium decreases. Yah!</p>
<p>You will be able to tell when your child is home on breaks by the gas/electric and water bills, regardless of how you arrange the heating/cooling- showers, computers on 24/7… The food in the refrigerator/pantry lasts a lot longer also (no running out of milk after you go to bed). Less laundry- such as towels. Of course you may see spikes when they bring home all of their laundry-dirty for winter break (I transported 3 guys and their laundry this past winter- bags and baskets filled the back of the suv). We gradually have changed our eating habits- at first we probably spent more but now we are getting lazier about dinner out and less/fewer formal meals. But we travel more- no kid schedules to consider (or teenager dislikes).</p>
<p>I have the time and used to clean house every two weeks years ago, with the two of us it’s every 3 or 4 weeks- consider monthly housecleaning services, two parents, especially when away at work, don’t get a house very dirty. I now plan my cleaning not for son’s arrival, but for after his departure. Last summer I told son he was responsible for “his” bathroom- it got done in 3 months by me after he moved back to school.</p>
<p>Our homeowner’s insurance covers son at school as does our health insurance. Just found out son’s college gpa/semester grades because he still needs that B average for the “good student” car discount and they spot checked after 3 years.</p>