Heating costs expected to rise for many this winter

The cold weather has arrived, marking the official start of the home heating season.

It’s a constant battle to keep energy costs down in the winter, and this year is no exception.

Albert Choy uses natural gas to heat his home. In the winter, he spends and about $500 a month and doesn’t anticipate this year will be much different.

“You know if nobody’s around I try to keep the temperature at least at 50° just to keep the taps and pipes from bursting,” Choy said.

The state’s annual home heating forecast says this winter will be colder than the last one, and energy prices will be moderately higher, including the cost of natural gas, propane, and electricity.

Home heating oil is the only exception with an anticipated decrease of 11%.

“I think we’re just bracing for the cold that’s coming and that’s here and that people are really going to need assistance,” warned Sharon Scott Chandler, CEO for ABCD, which provides fuel assistance.

She says people can get as much as $1,000, but that’s about half of what they qualified for last year, and it’s certainly not enough to cover heating costs for the whole winter.

“We’re expecting increases in applications and people seeking financial assistance. I think everything gone up, not only just the general cost of living and prices at the grocery store, but certainly what it cost to heat homes,” said Scott-Chandler.

Albert Choy says he regularly services the furnace in his home, which replaced an aging burner years ago. He says that’s helped to keep costs down along with putting on a sweater.

“We try to keep the temperature down at about 66° when it heats up and then at night it shuts down goes to about 58 or something.”

Besides ABCD, the state has a lot of programs to help keep your heating cost down. You can learn more on the website for the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources.