Ha, ha, ha! People think all you gotta do is dig a trench and drop the wire off the poles, not quite as easy as that. Cost varies wildly from rural to city, but fact is, where ever you are, it ain't cheap! And you're right, everybody winds up paying.

Public utilities are what keeps housing expensive. People are funny, they get accustomed to lights, heat, fresh water and sewers and of course internet and cell phone.

I was an early investor in Plug Power 25 yrs ago. They are a hydrogen fuel cell developer. Their goal was to build fuel cells that could power a 3br 1200 sq' house with a 1.5kw hydrogen fuel cell. The goal was, "The size of a washing machine price $5,000." (never quite got there. more like $25k-$50k powering remote cell towers and now indoor forklifts)

Anyway, off grid electric power technology would do wonders to open up huge amounts of land currently not financially suitable for development. Would reduce housing crisis dramatically in VT and across the country. I'm still waiting for this paradigm shift.