For one thing, it can get bitterly cold near the Canadian border, especially on the Great Lakes, while near the Gulf most places don't get below freezing more than a dozen days out of the whole winter. That impacts how a lot of heating is done, too; my mother's place is all electric, an obscenely inefficent way to heat, but sufficient for her needs (unless the power lines snap from heavy ice, but that's why she has propane heaters). Her monthly electric bill will seldom be more than a hundred dollars this winter, yet when I was working for the gas company in WI I saw a bill for an elderly woman who owed $600 for ONE MONTH. That's after they gave her a discount because she was on a fixed income. As to the prices, the reason I had that job in the first place is because the gas company had received a rebate from their fuel suppliers and were required by law to pass that along to customers, so they put out ads and set up a call center for the sole purpose of answering customer calls and accessing their account to see if and how much they were owed, then record how they wanted to receive payment.

That's why I'm not responding to the main thread; my fiancee might be able to give her a valid comparison, but comparing prices and heating requirements where Neph lives to those where I've spent most of my life would be pointless. *thanks God there's a sale on thermal underwear this weekend*