# Escobares, Texas electricity: AEP Texas Central wires, 1 split ZIP code to check

_Updated October 19, 2026. Data: ERCOT Oct 5, 2026; Census ACS 2020-2024; Power to Choose Oct 19, 2026, 7:59 AM CT._

**Escobares at a glance:** 1,261 Escobares-addressed homes, all wired by AEP Texas Central (ERCOT, Oct. 5, 2026). 1 split ZIP code (78584) holds 32 of Escobares's 1,260 placed homes (3%); those addresses need a lookup.

## Moving to Escobares

Local numbers for setting up a home in Escobares, each checked on the official source. More contacts: https://powerhopper.energy/texas-electricity/escobares/move-in-information

- **Public schools:** Roma ISD.
- **Driver license:** Texas DPS Driver License Office: Rio Grande City, 512-424-2600.

## Facts
- Land: 2.7 sq mi; 967 residents and 277 households per sq mi; 3.49 people per Escobares household. (Source: https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Heating fuel, Escobares homes (ACS 2020-2024): electricity 87.2% (±6), utility gas 3.5%, propane 3.0%; Starr County overall: 92.1% electric. All-electric homes feel winter rates more. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Of Escobares homes paying a power bill, 34.4% report $250 or more a month and 7.6% under $100 (Starr County: 33.5% at $250+). (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Housing stock: 88.9% detached houses, 8.1% mobile homes; median year built 1989, 9.9% built 2010 or later. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- ERCOT status split for 1,992 Escobares home meters (Oct. 5, 2026): active 1,261, inactive 470, de-energized 261; idle share 36.7%. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- ACS 2020-2024: 18.8% of Escobares housing units vacant (±7), with 20.5% of vacant units held for seasonal use. Vacant homes keep meters that are not counted as households. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- 1,261 home meters use the Escobares postal name, against 741 households inside city limits (1.7 per household): the mailing area runs well past the boundary. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- New home meters, Oct. 7-18, 2026, Escobares ZIP codes: 14 (top: 78582, 14); vacant-to-active: 39. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- 78582 carries 1,228 of 1,260 Escobares-addressed homes (97%); ratio across the whole ZIP 0.99, from 12,683 home meters in all and 12,795 households. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)

## Homes: heating fuel, bills, housing (ACS 2020-2024, the city (Census boundary))
- Heat with electricity: 87.2%
- Heat with utility gas: 3.5%
- Bill $250 or more: 34.4%
- Built 2010 or later: 9.9%
- Renter households: 34.3%
- Median year built: 1989

## Meters and households
- Residents, July 2025: 2,585
- Residents, 2020 base: 2,586
- Households (ACS): 741
- Active home meters: 1,261
- Inactive home meters: 470
- De-energized home meters: 261
- Active small-business meters: 158
- Active large-business meters: 0
- Home meters per household: 1.7
- ZIP codes listed: 2
- Split ZIP codes: 1
- County: Starr

## Plan prices (Oct 19, 2026 medians)
AEP Texas Central (164 listings): 12.7¢ / 12.1¢ / 12¢ per kWh at 500 / 1,000 / 2,000 kWh, delivery 5.6898¢ + $3.24/mo included.

## ZIP codes
**Not every address in these ZIP codes has retail choice; check your exact address.**

| ZIP | Homes with this address | All ZIP homes | Households | Ratio | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78582 | 1,228 | 12,683 | 12,795 | 0.99 | none |
| 78584 | 32 | 4,544 | 5,402 | 0.84 | split |

## Businesses
158 business meters. Business rate reviews: /business.

## Questions
**Do I get to pick my electric company in Escobares?** Mostly. ERCOT counts 1,261 competitive Escobares home meters, all on AEP Texas Central's system, against 741 households. Split: 78584. An address lookup settles it.
**Why are some Escobares electric bills so high in winter?** 87.2% of Escobares homes heat with electricity (ACS 2020-2024, margin ±6) and 3.5% with utility gas; 34.4% of bill-paying homes report $250 or more a month. Electric-heat homes should compare plans at winter usage.
**Which ZIP code covers most of Escobares?** 78582 (1,228 Escobares homes on the competitive market). Across the full ZIP: 0.99 meters per household, 12,683 home meters in all.
**Who handles Escobares power outages?** Outages go to AEP Texas Central (aeptexas.com/outages), the wires utility for 1,261 Escobares competitive homes.
**How do I set up power at a new Escobares home?** Check the address is on AEP Texas Central's wires, choose a plan and a start date. Escobares had 731 idle home meters (inactive or de-energized) on Oct. 5, 2026, so many move-ins reconnect an existing meter.
**My Escobares home has a Roma address. Does that matter?** Not for choice. Roma is the postal name on 93% of the 4,544-meter 78584 ZIP; the utility depends on the service address, not the postal name.

## Sources
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203): full extract as of Oct 5, 2026; daily files Oct 7-18, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: meters by status and premise type, by postal city: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25040, B25132, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25018, B19013, B25003, B25002, B25004 (90% margins of error): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates (B25003 households, B01003 population): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- Census Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv
- Census 2020 ZCTA-to-place and ZCTA-to-county relationship files: https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/rel2020/zcta520/
- EIA-861 (2024) utility service territories by county: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia861/
- PUCT Power to Choose residential offer export, Oct 19, 2026, 7:59 AM CT: https://www.powertochoose.org/en-us/Plan/ExportToCsv
- PUCT: Choosing an Electric Plan: https://www.puc.texas.gov/consumer-help/electricity/electric-plan/
- PUCT broker directory (BR260201): https://www.puc.texas.gov/industry/electric/directories/brk/alpha_brk/
- AEP Texas (Central Division): https://www.aeptexas.com/
- AEP Texas Central delivery tariff (effective September 29, 2026): https://www.aeptexas.com/lib/docs/ratesandtariffs/Texas/AEP_TEXAS_TARIFF_Eff_Sept_29_2026v1.pdf
- Census Bureau Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv
- Census Bureau 2025 Gazetteer Files, Texas places (land and water area): https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html
- Census Bureau Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25040, B25132, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25018, B19013, B25003, B25002, B25004 (90% margins of error): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25040, B25132, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25018, B19013, B25003, B25002, B25004 (90% margins of error): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25040, B25132, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25018, B19013, B25003, B25002, B25004 (90% margins of error): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, tables B25040, B25132, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25018, B19013, B25003, B25002, B25004 (90% margins of error): https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- ERCOT daily TDSP ESIID Extract files, Oct 7-18, 2026, via Power Hopper's Oct 18 ZIP study: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- ERCOT TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203
- Census Bureau Vintage 2025 city and town population estimates: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv

BJW Ventures LLC d/b/a Power Hopper | PUCT BR260201