# Cost of Electrical Hookup?



## jack_c-ville

How much does it usually cost to get a new electrical hookup? Say there's a house less than 1/4 mile away along a state road that already has it. 

We will probably be living in a motorhome for a few months this Summer while our new house is being built and I'm trying to figure out how much it will cost to have the power lines run out and a temporary pole put in immediately. I want to pay cash for the land, motorhome and power hook up but there is still a big question mark hanging over the electrical issue.

I'm also hoping to get the septic tank in quickly so that I can hook the RV into that too, but with heavy equipment moving around I might have to wait for the foundation, backfill and grading to be finished first.

I figure that the motorhome won't depreciate much in the space of 4 months with zero milage being put on it and I can sell it for most of what I paid once the house is done.

-Jack


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## BackwoodsIdaho

jack_c-ville said:


> How much does it usually cost to get a new electrical hookup? Say there's a house less than 1/4 mile away along a state road that already has it.
> 
> We will probably be living in a motorhome for a few months this Summer while our new house is being built and I'm trying to figure out how much it will cost to have the power lines run out and a temporary pole put in immediately. I want to pay cash for the land, motorhome and power hook up but there is still a big question mark hanging over the electrical issue.
> 
> I'm also hoping to get the septic tank in quickly so that I can hook the RV into that too, but with heavy equipment moving around I might have to wait for the foundation, backfill and grading to be finished first.
> 
> I figure that the motorhome won't depreciate much in the space of 4 months with zero milage being put on it and I can sell it for most of what I paid once the house is done.
> 
> -Jack


Just my 0.02 worth having done mostly of what you are considering

1. Electrical hookup cost varies widely. In our case, our property is on a county road with electrical and phone running along it. The phone company charged us $55. to install a 6 pair feeder cable to the TIU near our house (a run of approximately 1600 feet). The electrical company wanted $25000 to run the wire and two transformers the same distance. Granted they had to bore under the county road and do some other things, but it wasn't that big of a deal. We would have been on a small electrical co-op. They would not even credit us if we dug the trench first. So, we went solar and never looked back.

2. RV's depreciate a ton based on age not miles. The interiors take a hell of a beating from daily living in one and since the interiors are cheap to begin with they don't last. You don't say if you are buying new or used. The new ones really depreciate fast, the older ones not so fast. We ended up staying at the Motel 6 the first three months we were here while we built the 480 sq. ft. cabin we started with. At $179 per week, 24 hr spa's and good location it could not be beat. It was also close to a place I was working part-time at on a contract basis and the maintanence man there became my helper and good friend. It really makes a difference to be comfortable, get a good nights sleep and shower when you are building your own place. I say this from accumulated 4 years living in RV's.

3. Septic systems are a big deal most places. Get started early with perk tests, test holes and system design otherwise you might spend your whole summer just getting that put in. If you are doing it yourself (I have done two), plan on even more extra time as you learn the local specifics on these systems.

Not trying to be discouraging, just saying that it all takes time and nothing seems to happen as planned. We are going into our fourth year on our land and we just got the kids in their bedrooms but we are still sleeping in the loft. But we have running water, a shower which beats the outhouse and showers at the local health club for the first two years.

jim


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## DrippingSprings

Where I am at electric service is free the first 100 ft and right at 6 dollars a ft there after. 

I think older mobile homes make a good temporary shelter. Then you can either sell them or gut them and use the parts for another project. Besides if you get one new enough where else can you get a stove, hot water heater, tub, toilet etc to use later in your new build and a place to sleep for about a couple grand or so?


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## fordy

................In Texas , I stayed in a motel for about 4 months or so while waiting on my home to be built . When staying in a Motel , Longer than 30 days , (in Texas atleast) they are NOT supposed to charge Sales Tax on your rental charges . So , I would be sure and Ask as here the sales tax is 8.25 % which adds up after awhile . Most motel(s) WILL NOT inform you of this fact Unless you ASK !..fordy..


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## ibcnya

Spring of 2002 I had the local electric co-op run a line 1000 ft with the first pole and first 300 ft free and it cost me 2300 I believe.


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## Dreams30

We paid for our pole and everything that goes on it, had to put it all together ourselves. Them coming and running the wires from our pole to the closest other pole was free. 

We were lucky that we needed no permits, etc and did not have to pay an electrician. We were also lucky that the closest other post wasn't far away. Total cost for everything was about 350.00.

(from Rose who is currently living in a small RV and hooked to septic and elect which will be hooked to our home when it is built.)

Looking at other costs...
Septic 1,450 (500 gallon tank)
Road to our place 1,800

We have not gotten a well yet....we have quote from 2,250 to 4,000+ and are pumping water from a small spring.


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## old timer

back in 1995 when my EX wife and I decided to build there was no electric for 7 1/2 miles. I went to the co-op office and sat down with them and promised that I would only use electric for all appliances and heating. Had to build at least 3500 square. They agreed to run the lines to the edge of my land and then I had to pay $300 per pole and 4.50 a foot to run it in.... I had to supply and install the hook up which was the weather head, mast, and service entry from the 400 amp meter base (they supplied). I figure total we spent about $22,550  on electric for this house... however our bills are very low and we own stock in the company... I figure that when I am 274 years old :waa: that I will finally break even........LOL

The sad thing is that since we had electric here... the other land owners have bought in.... and have reduced the overall cost of the elec in this section of the county.... 

Good Luck
Greg


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## ChuckinVA

Jack,
You didn't say what power co you will have service from but as said above the vary according to the company. Va Power is natorious for outrageous fees based on the principal, where else are you going to go? I would look into a temporary service to use for the RV and also for construction. I think the cost is minimal, perhaps you could work out something with your electrical contractor if you let him know what you want to do. Plus you could locate it where you wanted it ,away from the actual construction. Keep in mind our red clay( think construction dirt) will ruin a floor that is not covered. I would look into a larger,used, say 25 to 30 foot trailer ( cheaper than a motor home ) which if you buy it right would be easier to get your money out of later. ( I have a contractor that is building a home in Faber who bought a new trailer to live in while building his home and will sell it when he is finished some time in the summer. PM me if you want his info and i'll share it with you.

CHUCK


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## Alex

They put in three poles and one short pole across the road. Ran power 700'

Total cost was $5,000 cdn ($4,000 USD) ... 2001.

Sounds high compared to all the other posts ... that's what we paid.

Good Luck,

Alex


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## Cyngbaeld

Best thing to do is call the utility company and ask them. As you can see, the amt it will cost varies wildly depending on where you live.


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## rambler

BackwoodsIdaho said:


> The electrical company wanted $25000 to run the wire and two transformers the same distance. Granted they had to bore under the county road and do some other things, but it wasn't that big of a deal. We would have been on a small electrical co-op. They would not even credit us if we dug the trench first. So, we went solar and never looked back.
> 
> jim


Just to make sure, you are saying $25,000 to cross the road & up your driveway????? I can see $2,500. But, you should get 5 miles or more of wire for $25,000.

Anyhow, every company is different, one needs to call & ask. Can't compare well one to another.

--->Paul


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## Quint

They're all different. Mine was maybe just a basic charge of a couple of hundred dollars I think. It was low enough that I didn't give it any consideration when building my homestead. It was free more or less. Water was another matter. It was really expensive. Less than drilling a well and buying the equipment to treat the water but still expensive.

I know a guy who paid over 30,000 dollars about 5 years ago to have power ran to his new house out in the sticks. He tried the off grid route at first but just couldn't produce the amount of power needed or do it reliably enough.


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## desdawg

As stated, every power company will have their own policy so you will have to ask. Also get their specs before you build your service. They are not all created equal.
Here, if you are within 1,000' the cost is zero for overhead service. For underground you would have to install your own conduit and meter housing/panel to their specs and the rest would be zero. We install 200 amp pole services for $750, utility company connects to one side and you connect to the other. That is just for the pole, meter housing and panel inspected and approved by the utility company.


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## coalroadcabin

Cyngbaeld said:


> Best thing to do is call the utility company and ask them. As you can see, the amt it will cost varies wildly depending on where you live.


I called our local power company-they were not very helpful. Said that they wouldn't even give us a ballpark until we had a building permit and had the foundation staked out _then_ they said they would 'send someone out to look at it' Jeez, and this is a co-op! Thought these were supposed to be friendly country folks!! :no:


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## jack_c-ville

I'd be buying a used class A motorhome for as much as $12,000. No financing. I'm thinking something along the lines of a 32' 1990 Fleetwood Pace Arrow. This is for me, my wife, my 1 year old daughter and 3 dogs. It would be starting around June and I'd put up a 200 sq ft. deck with a wooden gabled frame on it and a canvas roof & walls with screen windows as additional semi-outdoor living space. I can build that with a friend in a weekend. I figure that most of the depreciation has already been taken from an RV like that. If I pay $12,000 I expect that if we don't trash it I should be able to sell 4 or 5 months later for $10,000. $2,000 for 5 months rent is pretty good. No way I'm going to find a rental home or a decent motel that would be ok with 3 dogs anyway. And the dogs would be miserable cooped up in a little motel room all the time.

Trailer homes aren't allowed by zoning or covenant in a lot of places around here (don't get me started), but a motorhome doesn't fall under any of that regulation so long as it isn't year-round. I'd have no permits or fines to worry about.

The land that I intend to buy will have enough room for us to be back a ways from the construction site. I'm getting enough money by selling the house I fixed up in the city to pay a GC to do it (who I have worked with before and know I can trust), so I can be pretty confident that the house will be done by Winter. It's not a very big house since I plan to add on to it later by myself. 

With this in mind, do you think that the RV plan makes sense? I'd rather go with an RV than a trailer home for something this short-term because my family can have electricity, water and a toilet right away instead of maybe having to wait weeks or months for all of those systems to be available. When we need to empty the tanks or take on water we can just drive it over to a KOA campground not too far away. A few years ago I would have been perfectly happy living in a shed and digging an outhouse, so long as I can clean up enough for work. But having a family now and with relatives constantly coming over to visit the baby things are a little different.

On the electrical, I'll be dealing with Virginia Power. If it costs more than $15,000 then I will strongly consider switching to a more energy efficient house plan and spend that money on a solar & wind setup. It's amazing how different the cost of getting the same service is in different places. I know that different states have different laws about how much can be charged, with the rationale being that the power companies are granted right-of-way through so much private property that they owe favors of this kind to the public.

-Jack


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## mtman

in ar.we called the ele.co. they were very helpfull came out to look they installed a transformer for us on the pole no charge to us however they said our connection on the side of the house was to low gave us some names of electr.we found one that made the wire higher all new wire from pole to house he had to cut some big limbs that was in the way he charged us 350.00 i think that was more then fair


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## mightybooboo

jack_c-ville said:


> weekend. I figure that most of the depreciation has already been taken from an RV like that. If I pay $12,000 I expect that if we don't trash it I should be able to sell 4 or 5 months later for $10,000. $2,000 for 5 months rent is pretty good. No way I'm going to find a rental home or a decent motel that would be ok with 3 dogs anyway. And the dogs would be miserable cooped up in a little motel room all the time.
> 
> 
> -Jack


Comfort wise,that 32 footer for say 6 months would be doable.15 years old and 4-6 months use and the cushions and material should pretty much disintegrate.Sounds like you have some MH experience and already know that.They definitely arent made for full time use,and the manufacturers would be the first to say so.

That said,I like your plan,dont know how it will play out money wise,but I have a MH,lived in it 2 years while travelling,will live in it again for home construction.Very doable,and comfortable,just smaller is all.

Good luck with the new house.

BooBoo


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## caroline00

with our electric co-op it is $3.50 running foot. If you are living fulltime on the property, they will finance for 5 years adding it to your power bill.

We have property that we would like to add power to but we dont live on it. They expect you to use a generator while building.


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