Most homes in Rehoboth, Freetown and Lakeville burn heating oil, now $6.18 a gallon in Massachusetts

SOUTH COAST Most homes in Rehoboth, Freetown and Lakeville heat with oil, which averaged $6.18 a gallon in Massachusetts this week, while few homes in New Bedford and Fall River do.

The statewide residential average was $6.176 a gallon on Monday, Nov. 2, down 7.8 cents from a week earlier and $2.55 more than at this time last year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday. At that price a 200-gallon delivery costs about $1,235, roughly $509 more than the same delivery cost a year ago, when oil averaged $3.63.

Far more homes pay that price in some South Coast towns than in others. About 68% of the occupied homes in Rehoboth heat with oil, by the Census Bureau's estimates, as do 62% in Freetown, 60% in Lakeville, 56% in Rochester and 53% in Dighton, while the share is about 7% in New Bedford and 5% in Fall River, where utility gas heats close to four homes in five.

Across the 19 communities South Coast 360 covers, about 47,900 of roughly 218,000 occupied homes heat with oil, or 22%, by our count from the estimates, close to the statewide share of 22.4%.

Which towns burn the most oil

After the top five come Seekonk, where 48% of homes heat with oil, Marion at 47% and Acushnet at 42%. Mattapoisett, Wareham and Dartmouth sit between 30% and 38%, and Plymouth, Taunton and Westport between 24% and 28%, while Somerset and Swansea are at about 17% and Fairhaven at about 14%.

Propane, the other fuel that arrives by truck, adds to the count in many of the same towns. It heats about 16% of homes in Rochester and Plymouth, about 15% in Lakeville, Marion and Rehoboth and about 14% in Freetown, so more than eight homes in 10 in Rehoboth heat with oil or propane, by our arithmetic from the same estimates.

The Census figures come from the American Community Survey's estimates for 2020 through 2024, the newest numbers for every town, and each carries a margin of error that is widest in the small towns. Rehoboth's estimate of 3,172 homes heated with oil, for example, carries a margin of plus or minus 356 homes.

Homes heated with oil and propane, by community (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 estimates, occupied homes; shares are our arithmetic)

Community	Homes heated with oil	Share with oil	Share with propane
Rehoboth	3,172	68%	15%
Freetown	2,022	62%	14%
Lakeville	2,534	60%	15%
Rochester	1,243	56%	16%
Dighton	1,575	53%	11%
Seekonk	2,862	48%	5%
Marion	987	47%	15%
Acushnet	1,773	42%	5%
Mattapoisett	1,124	38%	11%
Wareham	3,256	31%	9%
Dartmouth	3,685	30%	5%
Plymouth	7,403	28%	16%
Taunton	6,419	27%	5%
Westport	1,608	24%	7%
Somerset	1,271	17%	2%
Swansea	1,157	17%	4%
Fairhaven	984	14%	4%
New Bedford	2,879	7%	2%
Fall River	1,962	5%	3%

What a delivery costs

The weekly figures are statewide averages of what households pay for delivered fuel, excluding taxes, and a local dealer's price can run above or below them. At this week's average, 150 gallons of oil comes to about $926, against about $545 at last year's price, and oil now costs about 70% more than it did a year ago.

Propane rose for a third straight week, to $3.812 a gallon, 9.5 cents more than the week before and about 42 cents, or 12.5%, above the $3.389 households paid a year ago. At that price 100 gallons of propane costs about $381.

Wholesale heating oil in Massachusetts fell 22.5 cents in the week, to $5.085 a gallon, a larger drop than the 7.8 cents at the residential level.

How Massachusetts compares

Massachusetts oil remained the second most expensive in New England, behind Rhode Island, where the average fell 19.1 cents to $6.205 a gallon. Connecticut households paid an average of $5.991 a gallon and Maine households $5.984, below the New England average of $6.073 and the national residential average of $6.138.

Massachusetts propane, at $3.812, sat below the New England average of $3.978, and only Maine, at $3.691, was lower in the region, while Rhode Island households paid $4.141 a gallon and Connecticut households $4.448.

At the pump, regular gasoline averaged $4.104 a gallon in Massachusetts on Nov. 2, down 4.1 cents from the week before and $1.19 more than a year earlier.

Help with the bills

Fuel assistance pays part of the winter heating bill for eligible households that heat with any fuel, including oil, propane, gas, electricity and wood, and covers bills from Nov. 1 through April 30, with payments made directly to the heating company. PACE serves New Bedford, Acushnet, Dartmouth, Fairhaven, Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester from 255 Union St. in New Bedford, open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays with walk-ins welcome, at 508-525-4271, and takes new applications online at toapply.org/PACE. Citizens for Citizens serves Fall River, Freetown (including Assonet), Rehoboth, Swansea, Somerset, Seekonk, Westport, Taunton, Berkley, Dighton and Lakeville, at 508-679-0041 for greater Fall River and 508-823-6346 for greater Taunton, and lists a top income of $103,049 for a household of four. How fuel assistance works and how to apply.

Households that heat with oil and earn between 60% and 100% of the state median income, more than $103,049 and up to $171,749 for a family of four, may qualify for a new one-time benefit of up to $680 starting in December, under the winter energy plan Gov. Maura Healey announced Oct. 5. The governor's office said about 50,000 heating oil households statewide are expected to qualify and that the benefit runs until April 30 or until the money runs out. At this week's average, $680 buys about 110 gallons of oil. Who qualifies for the $680 benefit.

What happens next

The energy agency lists its next weekly heating oil and propane prices for Thursday, Nov. 12, a day later than its usual Wednesday, because its schedule moves publication back a day in weeks with a holiday from Monday through Wednesday and Veterans Day falls on Wednesday, Nov. 11.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.