I know there are a million electric companies out there these days, and that a lot of people I know are even agents trying to sell it. Can anyone give me the basics at how to go about choosing the right one. I went online to a site that was supposed to compare diff. companies. I see they all are about the same price(between 8 and 11 cents perKW. But why do they have 3mo. 6mo. 12mo and 24 month plans for the same company? What changes between a 6mo contract and a 24month. And how can I find one that won't charge me a huge deposit. I purchased my home from my dad a yr and a half ago. He had TXU and so I called them to see about switching it over to my name. Well they wanted a $300 deposit. I know I don't have perfect credit, but I almost always pay my bills ontime and was able to purchase my home. So does anyone know of a great company they are happy with that they didn't have to pay a deposit and seem to have a good rate? They make this confusing!
For now pick one that you can afford to have hooked up.....if it doesn't work out, then maybe you can switch without the deposit since you have had one in your name and kept it up well for credit................
Good Luck.
The rates are probably different on the different month plans. check that out. If you have not paid electric bills in your name before they will probably charge you a deposit. Ask them how long you have to pay your bill on time before they refund your deposit. The word that really struck me was almost, you need to always pay your bills on time you do not realize how one late bill effects your credit. Good luck, we have lived in a lot of places but always smaller places where there was no choice in electric companies, that was the most confusing part of moving to Texas. We use TXU but are not on a contract so we are free to change at any time with no penalties. I wish you many blessings in your new home. You may also be able to get a letter of good standing from a company you pay on time each month. The water company straight across the board either charges you a deposit or you have to submit a letter of credit no matter what your credit score so I got a letter of good standing from TXU to say I had paid my bills on time you might want to ask about that in lieu of a deposit. It does not hurt to ask.
We've had TXU yrs ago, Reliant, several yrs and currently on 2nd yr with Champion. We've never paid a deposit. We are on a fixed rate with Champion around 9 cents /KW
www.powertochoose.org has good info comparing companies.
We switched from TXU to Champion just over a year ago, contract was up and we have renewed with them. They are 8.9 kw. We haven't had any problems with them.
I'm assuming the site you are referencing is powertochose.org. As Wendy L. pointed out, the rates vary depending upon the length of the contract. You will probably need to have a 1 year contract in order to get the lowest rate most companies advertise.
I see you are in Crowley. I am in Southwest Fort Worth and I have Bounce Energy. My house is over 1500 sq ft and my bill last month was $129. We are gone a lot so the A/C isn't running constantly, but we weren't out of town at all either. I think I may be locked into a lower rate, but I don't know what it actually is. I know there is no monthly service charge though. I was not required to put down a deposit either.
