Lotsa Things are cheaper in Maine compared to PA (Blue Hill: insurance, loan)

[Zarathu]

Originally Posted by mainebrokerman

over 6,000 Iga stores, in many countries

What exactly does IGA stand for?

[Bydand]

Originally Posted by Zarathu

What exactly does IGA stand for?

Independent Grocers Alliance (IGA) Google can be your friend if you let it .

[cebdark]

Originally Posted by Three Wolves In Snow

No, I said the excise tax was $12. Registration was $35 or something like that.

In Miami, it was $42. No excise tax. So, even though I was told it would be HUNDREDS and it was HORRIBLE and EXPENSIVE, "don't move here!!!!!!!!!!!", I paid $5 more than I did in Miami to get the car totally legal in Maine.

Woo.

I think the people you are referring to may have been referring to new cars which are actually assessed on the MSRP price not the actual purchase price. Actually, according to this link they all are assessed at the MSRP.

"For example, a 3 year old car with an MSRP of $19,500 would pay $263.25."

Maine Revenue Services: Property Tax -

Many people who are considered "snow birds" register their cars in FL for the express purpose of saving hundreds of dollars on registrations, and also to not have to inspect a car more than (correct me if I'm wrong) every two years. They don't necessarily stay there for the full 6 months that are required to maintain residence however. Perhaps they just tend to drive newer vehicles. Who knows?

Up here, we have what a friend of mine likes to term "Inspection Nazis" . Although the actual inspection fee is a measly $12, it's more than headlights and blinkers now - and a simple inspection for our Dodge Ram ended up costing us well over $1500.00 in parts and labor (and yes, we had them show us everything that needed to be replaced - including a ridiculously priced replacement bulb for a fog lamp - if it's installed at the factory, it must be replaced for inspection, regardless if you use them or not).

If it fails, the current inspection sticker is cut in half, and you best not meet a state trooper if you decide not to tow it home, or you'll get a ticket for operating an uninspected motor vehicle. Maine is not kind to vehicles, and the state has really stepped up the collection of fines in this poor economy.

So, I guess every situation is different. I'm glad yours was inexpensive - for a person buying a new car? Not so much. I have friends who lease new vehicles. Depending on the vehicle, they can pay anywhere from $263 to $800+

Or, they can be cheap like me and pay $75 for a 14 year old beater car with no payment, and $225 or thereabouts) for a reasonably good 6 year old vehicle with no monthly payment. Our Dodge sits in the driveway unless we need to haul something because it has a whirlpool in the tank, but it costs somewhere in the range of $200 to register every year.

It's all about choices, but it's definitely not always inexpensive. I think people need to know how variable it can be is all.

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by Zarathu

What exactly does IGA stand for?

Independent Grocers Alliance


IGA was started in May 1926 when a group of 100 independent retailers in Poughkeepsie, New York, and Sharon, Connecticut, led by J. Frank Grimes, organized themselves into a single marketing system. This group quickly expanded, and by the end of the year there were more than 150 IGA retailers. In 1930 there were over 8,000 grocery stores using the IGA name. The company uses the "Hometown Proud Supermarkets" slogan. Today, many IGA grocery stores are still located in smaller cities and towns throughout the United States.

The stores in the Alliance remain independently owned and operated. The Alliance oversees several resources shared among the member stores. These include, most visibly, the IGA store brand products and the logistical network that distributes them. The Alliance also provides training and assessment programs and an online advertising platform. It regularly coordinates promotional events and charity fundraising events that benefit store communities.

[Three Wolves In Snow]

Originally Posted by Zarathu

We're gonna make a list of stuff we normally buy at the Hannaford in BH and then check it at the IGA in Trenton, and then at the Walmart in Ellsworth and see what the cost is. We get back to you next time we go in.

I can see that YOU'ALL INFORMED MINDS WANT TO KNOW!

I just take my receipts. I saved some receipts from Publix, in Miami, to do comparison shopping, (including the taxes), and then have saved some Hannaford receipts to do comparison shopping with Wally World.

Just between Miami and Maine, I saved $100 on groceries.

When I went to Wally World, I saved about another $30. Not a lot but still, a little bit. (The milk was the biggest saver...$1 difference between Hannaford and Wally World...and since I go through milk like it's gonna run out, it is so worth the 2 extra miles out of my way in gas.)

Some things in Wally World are NOT cheaper, (not just meat), and be prepared to bring a calculator because apparently they like to give the price per OUNCE. Seriously.

[Zarathu]

Originally Posted by Three Wolves In Snow

.... shopping with Wally World.

Where is Wally world? I don't think its close to me.

[Submariner]

We have had a routine of buying older beater vehicles, and throwing lots of money at them each year for maintenance. After moving to Maine in 2005, and seeing how high priced older vehicles are, we decided to try a first for us. To buy a 'new' car. So in 2008 when my Dw needed a new commuter vehicle we bought a brand spanking new Chevy, 10 miles on the odometer.

What surprised us was how the taxes and registration on that new car was so much less than what we had been paying each year in our previous state.



Now in 2011, our youngest son came home from school, got a job, started using my beat-up pickup to commute with, but fuel costs on drive my pickup are barely less then his wages. So he needed an economic commuter. We decided to offer to sell to him my Dw's '08 commuter car, and to once again buy a new car for her.

So here we are, in 2011 and my Dw is driving a 2011 vehicle. Again taxes and registration were not bad, so we checked with our previous state. Again it would have cost us twice as much to have registered the same vehicle there.



Registering a new vehicle in Maine does cost more than registering an old vehicle in Maine. But the mantra that all new vehicle registration is more expensive in Maine, is simply false.

In fact I have seen, from our experience that depending on what you drive, registering an old beater in other states, may still cost you far more than a new vehicle in Maine.


Since taxes are so low in Maine, we may likely continue buying new cars here, each time that we need a different vehicle.

[kellysmith]

What's high to one person might not be to another. Excise tax is based on the MSRP just like others have said here. The amount of excise tax decreases for 5 years after which the excise tax remains the same. Here's a calculator that will show you precisely what you will be talking about. Just use MSRP of the vehicle, not what you might have paid. I'm of the belief that excise tax on new vehicles is high.

Excise tax calculator

[OutDoorNut]

Originally Posted by Zarathu

While the local Hannaford is beautiful, and lots of people shop there, the prices are about 25% or more higher than PA. However, if I just drive 17 minutes, I can go to the hated(at least by me) Walmart in Ellsworth, and get food prices that are about 10% cheaper than in PA. Since I live at the northern part of the island its pretty easy to skip into Walmart.

Is that a fair comparision?

I mean, shouldn't you be comparing Walmart food prices in Maine to Walmart food prices in PA?

[mainegrl2011]

Originally Posted by Zarathu

Where is Wally world? I don't think its close to me.

Do you really not know? It's a nickname or term of endearment for Wal-mart.