Depends on your area I guess. I know here in West Virginia home owners are being raked over the coals this season. EVERYTHING went up. The utility companies here are so greedy, yet the state always approves their rate increases for every excuse they can come up with.

Not only is heating oil up.., but Mtn'neer Gas just got approved for a HUGE rate increase. Everyone's bill is said to go up at least $67.00 per month now. There's no shortage of natural gas. The gas company only reads the meter "every other" month and guesstimates the next month.., so they're driving around half as much as they used to. There's no end in sight.., and the state keeps approving the rate hikes.

In the last 4 months, my electric, water, sewage, trash, and gas bills have all increased. West Va is one of the highest priced states in the US for natural gas and heating oil-not to mention higher taxes on gasoline too.

The funny thing is homeowners are fighting the rate increases.., so the utility companies are really the one's losing out. People are using less water, turning off more lights-switching to lower wattage bulbs, driving less, and heating their homes with wood, and pellet stoves. So many homes here already have heating stoves, but never used them too

My wife and I are fighting it too. Our basement is fully finished with living room, 2 bedrooms and a full bath. It also has a nice fireplace. I'm putting up a simple door to the basement to majorly reduce draft and heat loss, dropping the thermostat upstairs to 68 degrees and heating the basement with wood Being a mountain state sure makes it nice for wood-burning.