# La Joya, Texas electricity: AEP Texas Central wires and 2,033 competitive homes

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

**La Joya at a glance:** 2,033 La Joya-addressed homes, all wired by AEP Texas Central (ERCOT, Oct. 5, 2026). La Joya's 2,024 placed homes sit in unsplit ZIP codes; a lookup still confirms each address.

## Moving to La Joya

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

- **City hall (ask about water service):** City of La Joya: City Hall (main line), 956-581-7002.
- **Natural gas:** Texas Gas Service: customer service, 800-700-2443.
- **Public schools:** La Joya ISD.
- **Driver license:** Texas DPS Driver License Office: Mission, 512-424-2600.

## Facts
- Land: 4.2 sq mi (water 0.2); 1,250 residents and 347 households per sq mi; 3.61 people per La Joya 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, La Joya homes (ACS 2020-2024): electricity 95.0% (±5), utility gas 2.0%; Hidalgo County overall: 90.6% 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 La Joya homes paying a power bill, 24.4% report $250 or more a month and 6.8% under $100 (Hidalgo County: 26.9% at $250+). (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- Housing stock: 67.4% detached houses, 12.8% in 5+ unit buildings, 8.8% mobile homes; median year built 1996, 20.8% built 2010 or later. (Source: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2024/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/)
- La Joya-addressed home meters on Oct. 5, 2026: 2,033 active, 529 inactive, 386 de-energized, so 31.0% were not in use (ERCOT). (Source: https://www.ercot.com/misapp/GetReports.do?reportTypeId=203)
- ACS 2020-2024: 19.8% of La Joya housing units vacant (±9). 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/)
- 2,033 home meters use the La Joya postal name, against 1,458 households inside city limits (1.39 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/)
- 78560 carries 1,943 of 2,024 La Joya-addressed homes (96%); ratio across the whole ZIP 1.47, from 2,150 home meters in all and 1,467 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: 95.0%
- Heat with utility gas: 2.0%
- Bill $250 or more: 24.4%
- Built 2010 or later: 20.8%
- Renter households: 46.6%
- Median year built: 1996

## Meters and households
- Residents, July 2025: 5,257
- Residents, 2020 base: 4,446
- Households (ACS): 1,458
- Active home meters: 2,033
- Inactive home meters: 529
- De-energized home meters: 386
- Active small-business meters: 371
- Active large-business meters: 1
- Home meters per household: 1.39
- ZIP codes listed: 2
- Split ZIP codes: 0
- County: Hidalgo

## 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78560 | 1,943 | 2,150 | 1,467 | 1.47 | none |
| 78576 | 81 | 4,070 | 3,637 | 1.12 | none |

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

## Questions
**Can La Joya homes choose an electric provider?** Mostly. ERCOT counts 2,033 competitive La Joya home meters, all on AEP Texas Central's system, against 1,458 households. An address lookup settles it.
**Do La Joya homes heat with electricity?** 95.0% of La Joya homes heat with electricity (ACS 2020-2024, margin ±5) and 2.0% with utility gas; 24.4% 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 La Joya?** 78560: 1,943 La Joya-addressed competitive homes; ratio 1.47 across the ZIP (2,150 home meters in all, 1,467 households).
**Who handles La Joya power outages?** Outages go to AEP Texas Central (aeptexas.com/outages), the wires utility for 2,033 La Joya competitive homes.
**How do I set up power at a new La Joya home?** Check the address is on AEP Texas Central's wires, choose a plan and a start date. La Joya had 915 idle home meters (inactive or de-energized) on Oct. 5, 2026, so many move-ins reconnect an existing meter.

## 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 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

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