# Highlands, Texas electricity: CenterPoint wires and 4,495 competitive homes

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

**In short:** ERCOT counts 4,495 active residential meters with a Highlands address, all on CenterPoint's wires (October 5, 2026). Nearly every Highlands address in our data is on CenterPoint's wires and can pick a retail provider.

## Moving to Highlands

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

- **Public schools:** Goose Creek CISD, Deer Park ISD.
- **Driver license:** Texas DPS Driver License Office: Baytown, 512-424-2600.

## Who delivers electricity in Highlands?
ERCOT counts 4,495 active residential meters with a Highlands address, all on CenterPoint's wires (October 5, 2026).

## Can every address in Highlands choose?
No split flag on any ZIP code that holds Highlands's 4,495 competitive homes; most streets here can shop.

## What is different about Highlands?
- Highlands is a census-designated place, so the Census Bureau publishes no annual city estimate for it; the ACS 2020-2024 survey puts it at about 6,335 residents in 2,240 occupied households. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Highlands covers 4.9 square miles of land and 1.6 square miles of water (Census 2025 Gazetteer). That works out to about 1,298 residents and 459 occupied households per square mile of land, with roughly 2.8 residents for every Highlands 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/)
- The Highlands mailing area is bigger than the CDP: ERCOT lists 4,495 competitive homes under the Highlands postal city, 2.01 for each of the CDP's 2,240 Census 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/)
- Of the 2,585,110 homes CenterPoint serves on the competitive market, 0.2% have a Highlands mailing address. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- Vacancy signal: 8.2 percent of residential meters in Highlands's core ZIP codes were de-energized on October 5, 2026 (401 off, 4,495 on), per ERCOT. (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- One ZIP code, 77562, holds almost every Highlands-addressed competitive home (4,495). Taken whole, 77562 has 1.31 competitive meters per Census household: 4,495 meters, 3,427 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/)
- Electric bills over $250 a month: 40.3 percent of households in 77562, Highlands's main ZIP code, per the ACS 2020-2024; the same survey puts median household income there at $57,364 and the renter share at 19.5 percent. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Baytown, 6 miles from Highlands, has the most competitive homes nearby (51,848); Galena Park has the fewest per household, still 0.91. (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/)

## By the numbers
- Population (ACS 2020-2024; no annual estimate for a CDP): 6,335
- Occupied households (ACS 2020-2024): 2,240
- Active residential meters with a Highlands address: 4,495
- Active business meters with a Highlands address: 566
- Residential meters per Census household: 2.01
- Delivery utilities (homes): CenterPoint 4,495
- Counties: Harris
- ZIP codes touching Highlands: 1
- Split ZIP codes (flagged below): 0

## Plan prices (median ¢/kWh at 500 / 1,000 / 2,000 kWh)
- CenterPoint: 14 / 13.2 / 13; delivery 6.5333¢/kWh + $4.90/mo

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

| ZIP | Postal cities | Land in city | Competitive homes | Households | Ratio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 77562 | Highlands 100% | 36% | 4,495 | 3,427 | 1.31 | Near-full coverage.  |

## Business electricity in Highlands
566 active business meters. Power Hopper compares offers from retail electric providers and direct suppliers; for high-consumption businesses we can run a competitive bid. No savings or bidder count is promised. Businesses in Texas retail-choice areas can request a rate review online.

## Questions
**Can Highlands residents pick their own electric company?** Most Highlands homes can. ERCOT's October 5, 2026 extract has 4,495 Highlands-addressed homes on CenterPoint's competitive system, compared with 2,240 households in the Census survey. No Highlands ZIP code carries a split flag, but only an address lookup is certain.
**Which Highlands ZIP code has the most homes on the competitive market?** 77562. It holds 4,495 Highlands-addressed competitive homes; counting every address in the ZIP, ERCOT has 4,495 meters for roughly 3,427 households, a 1.31 ratio.
**How much is electricity in Highlands right now?** On October 19, 2026, the median fixed-rate Power to Choose listing on CenterPoint's wires was 13.2¢ per kWh at 1,000 kWh a month (173 listings); CenterPoint's delivery charge of 6.5333¢ per kWh plus $4.90 a month is included. A median is not a quote.
**How do I start electric service at a new Highlands address?** Confirm the address is on CenterPoint's wires, then pick a plan and a start date. In 77562, 10.1% of residents moved in the past year (ACS); 9 meters in 77562 went vacant-to-active Oct. 7-18, 2026.
**Why are there more electric meters than households in Highlands?** 4,495 Highlands-addressed meters against 2,240 CDP households is 2.01 per household: the Highlands postal area extends past the CDP boundary, and new homes get meters before the Census counts them. It doesn't mean every nearby address can choose.
**Who restores power in Highlands after an outage?** CenterPoint, at centerpointenergy.com/outage: it carries power to all 4,495 Highlands-addressed competitive homes, whatever retail provider bills them.

## 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
- 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/
- CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric: https://www.centerpointenergy.com/
- CenterPoint delivery tariff (effective October 1, 2026): https://ftp.puc.texas.gov/public/puct-info/industry/electric/rates/tdr/tdu/CenterPoint_Rate_Report.pdf
- Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/
- 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/
- 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 TDSP ESIID Extract (report 203), Oct 5, 2026: 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/
- 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 ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B25003: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/

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