Last week, I called my gas and electricity provider, PSE&G, to transfer my account from my old apartment to the new. The phone system said that I should complete my request online, so that’s what I did. It’s a good thing I called the back earlier this week to verify they had my information. As I suspected after not receiving an email confirmation, they did not have my move on record. Now I’ve been reassured that the power will be in my name starting my move-in date, tomorrow, as required by my lease.
The story with my cable is much more favorable. First of all, I will be happy to ditch Comcast for a smaller local cable company, Patriot Media. There is competition in the area, which is a good thing for me, the consumer. Basic cable is being paid for by my landlord for all residents; it’s included in the rent. I’ve decided to add expanded digital channels, a plethora of HBO channels and a digital video recorder to the package for a total of $13 a month.
Cable internet from Patriot Media is included in the rent as well and will either be 10 MBps (matching the connection in my current apartment) or 25 MBps if Verizon FiOS is available in the area. (I checked — it’s not.)
Here’s a side question. How do I write off my Internet connection as a business expense if its cost is included in my rent?
There is some bad news: Comcast recently purchased Patriot Media and the sales representative told me they will officially become a part of Comcast around January 2008. That shouldn’t have any effect my pricing for the next year, but I’m sure Comcast will be less competitive.
I’ll be stopping by this afternoon to pick up my keys, and tonight I’ll load up my car with several boxes. I’ll begin moving tomorrow afternoon, and I’m scheduled to be moved out by July 1.
Updated February 6, 2012 and originally published June 20, 2007. If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to the RSS feed or receive daily emails. Follow @flexo on Twitter and visit our Facebook page for more updates.
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Luke Landes founded Consumerism Commentary in 2003 and has been building online communities since 1990. Luke, also known as Flexo, has contributed to PC World Magazine, US News, Forbes, and other publications. 
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
So you’re renting? I hope your moving process was a lot smoother than mine. I didn’t have cable and internet for almost 4 months. The service was through comcast.
That would be far too long for me to go without Internet at home, especially considering I’m a blogger. As it is, my cable won’t be installed until a week after I’ve moved in. I may have to go back to my old apartment to take care of my blogging.