Families Cutting Costs > Mohawk Valley

• Family of four, two teens
• Middle income, large garden
• Eat at home, 25% from farm, 10% eat out - takeout from Pizza Hut, snacks on the run from Stewarts
• No commute, shop at Price Chopper
• Heat with fuel oil
• Pickup and SUV - 15000 miles a year each

• Shared apartment in /village with 3 other students, pay for electric and natural gas
• Eat out 50% - on campus and Taco Bell and BK
• 2020 Subaru Impreza, 10,000 miles a year, to campus and back
• Interest in climate action

• Parent and two young children in day
• Works at School in food service, lower income
• Rents and pays utilities
• 1998 Ford sedan, 15000 miles a year
• Rarely eats out but serves mostly prepared food from Sav-a-Lot, relies on SNAP

• Small bungalow in City, heats with natural gas, older appliances
• 2022 Chevy sedan with 70,000 miles, 5000 miles a year
• Lives on Social Security
• Shops at Farmers Market in season, Walmart for balance, eats out at Senior Citizen and church dinners

• High Income, 2500 square foot camp, heat pumps for heating and cooling
• Shops at Whole Foods, 50% prepared food, 50% prepares at home
• 2025 Tesla Model X, 2024 Ford Expedition, tows motorboat
• Parents work remotely, two teens, one  interested in climate action

• Family of 5, middle income but being squeezed by higher costs of truck maintenance and insurance
• 50% of food from gardens, beef cow, and orchards, hunting and fishing by teens
• Older farmhouse heated with fuel oil by aging boiler,  never insulated, back up wood stove
• Teens drive older gas powered ATV, snowmobile, and motorcycle.

• SOLO: Food Choices Tally

Breakfasts- Costs & Options

Lunches - Costs & Options

Dinners - Costs & Options

Snacks & Drinks - Costs & Options

• Using Apps to Know Your Food and See Costs per Nutritional Value
• Compare Costs: Price Chopper, Walmart, Aldi's, Local Food
• Community Cost Cutting: community meals, Food Buying Club, Online Community Food Marketplace

• SOLO: Family Home Energy Tally Sheet -> Scorecard
• Home Energy Usage Assessments > Virtual and In-Person 
• Air Sealing to Reduce Costs
• Use of inexpensive ceramic heaters to only heat space you are in
• Sensors and Controllers to use energy only when needed
• Community Cost Cutting :  Home Energy Buying Club -- fuel oil, propane, wood; weatherization, insulation, energy equipment maintenance services; Community Solar; 

• SOLO: Family Transportation Tally Sheet -> Scorecard
• Share Rides, Carpool
• Share equipment 
• Community Cost Cutting: volunteer dispatchers for rides, delivery, and pickup services for members of the community transportation services hub; equipment rentals; EV charging; community transportation costs scorecard