Aaron Layman's Katy Texas Real Estate Forum

National Power Co Pulls Fixed Rate Pricing, In Katy, Houston Texas

National Power Co. customers who saw their fixed rate pricing plans canceled by the company have good reason to complain to the public utility commission.  The fact that National Power would have the audacity to cancel rate plans on customers only underscores the flaws in the deregulated electricity market.  After numerous ads touting the guarantees and of peace of mind in fixed rate plans, consumers were likely shocked to see that National Power was using the "material change" clause in their contracts to nullify price guarantees and hike rates.

National Power's rates have already been pulled from the powertochoose site, but more needs to be done to punish the company and/or limit their ability to do business in the state.  National Power has changed its mind and decided to honor the existing plans for now, but it will be interesting to see how the PUC handles the situation as it unfolds.

For more information about real estate and mortgage issues in Katy or West Houston contact Aaron Layman.  He is a licensed real estate broker and mortgage broker.  You can contact him directly at 281-994-5190.  You can also visit him on the web at www.AaronLayman.com.

Phone Companies Passing Off Junk Fees As Taxes

Have you ever looked at you phone bill and wondered about the strange charges?  As it turns out, you should be wondering.  A recent call to Entouch Systems (my local communications provider) left me puzzled.  I called Entouch about the "Res FCC Approved Line Chg" on the telephone portion of my bill and asked to have it removed.  The representative first tried to tell me that the charge was from the FCC.  When I told her that it indeed was not, she said they still couldn't remove it.  The Entouch representative put me on hold to speak with a supervisor, then she again said she could not do anything.

The FCC's Understanding Your Telephone Bill explains the the fallacy in the Entouch rep's argument.  The site clearly states:

Access charges are fees charged subscribers or other telephone companies by a local telephone company for the use of its local network.

The FCC allows local telephone companies to bill customers for a portion of the costs of providing access. These charges are not a government charge or tax. The maximum allowable access charges per telephone line are set by the FCC, but local telephone companies are free to charge less or not at all. Access charges for second or additional lines at the same residence are higher than the charges for the primary line. These charges can be described on your telephone bill as “Federal access charge,” “Customer or Subscriber Line Charge,” “Interstate Access Charge,” etc.

State public service commissions regulate access charges for intrastate (within a state) calls. In some states, a state subscriber line charge may appear on customer bills.

I am in the process of filing a complaint with the FCC based on this information.  I am curious to see how Entouch will explain it's compliance with the FCC's Truth-in-Billing requirement.  That should be another interesting tap dance.

I encourage you to contact your phone company and ask them about this junk fee that is being passed off as a tax.  If you have a written response from your phone company with a "supposed" explanation of the fee that you believe to be false, I would like to hear from you.  I'm wondering if there is an attorney out there who would like to take up this issue as a class-action case for consumers in the Houston area.

For more information about Junk Fees on your phone bill here at two sites that you can visit:

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/understanding.html (FCC)

http://www.rd.com/content/dont-pay-these-new-hidden-fees/1/ (Reader's Digest Article on Junk Fees)

For more information about real estate and mortgage issues in Katy or West Houston contact Aaron Layman.  He is a licensed real estate broker and mortgage broker.  You can contact him directly at 281-994-5190.  You can also visit him on the web at www.AaronLayman.com.

Wal-Mart Sells 100 Millionth Energy Saver Bulb

Wal-Mart has reached their goal of selling 100 million energy efficient light bulbs earlier than anticipated.  Thanks in part to a strong marketing push and lower bulb prices, the company has managed to make more households a little greener.  The compact fluorescent bulbs use much less energy than their incandescent counterparts and they produce less heat.  If you are looking to trim a little more off your electric bill, you owe it to yourself to give them a try.

For more information about real estate and mortgage issues in Katy or West Houston contact Aaron Layman.  He is a licensed real estate broker and mortgage broker.  You can contact him directly at 281-994-5190.  You can also visit him on the web at www.AaronLayman.com.

TXU & Reliant Over Charging Katy Texas Electric Customers

It's refreshing to know that not everyone is fooled by Corporate America's thirst for gluttony.  Loren Steffy's Chronicle column on TXU today underscores the untapped potential that Texas electricity customers have yet to realize.

TXU CEO John Wilder will soon get his hands on roughly $280 million from his short 4 year tenure at the company.   The huge payday is evidently his reward for taking the company private and trying to hoodwink Texas consumers.  TPG and Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts are the two private equity firms that will take control of the company.  Their intention is to build three more coal-fired plants (they originally wanted 11) and take advantage of the huge spread between electricity production costs with coal versus that of natural gas.  As I have previously posted on this site, wholesale electricity rates are largely influenced by the price of natural gas since gas accounts for the largest percentage of generation.  It is cheaper and dirtier to produce electricity with coal.

Let TXU and Reliant know that you don't appreciate the huge sums of money that are being accumulated at the public's expense.  Go to www.powertochoose.com and look for a provider that will give you a competitive rate.  Deregulation only works if you are actually willing to switch providers!

In case you haven't noticed, the price of natural gas has taken a nose dive lately.  It's deplorable that the major electric providers are not fully passing these savings to customers.  If you wondered why TXU and Reliant spent so much money advertising their "price protection" plans, it's painfully obvious now.  They wanted to lock you in to a high rate to inflate their profit margins while the cost of electricity production was falling.

To view Loren Steffy's business blog visit http://blogs.chron.com/lorensteffy/

For more information about real estate issues in Katy, Texas contact Aaron Layman.  He is a licensed real estate broker and mortgage broker.  You can contact him directly at 281-994-5190.  You can also visit him on the web at www.AaronLayman.com

Lower Natural Gas Prices Result in Lower Electric Bills

While the mortgage meltdown and liquidity crisis have put a damper on the American economy lately, a factor that should not be overlooked by Texas electricity customers is the falling price of natural gas.  Natural gas effects the "spot" price that electric providers must pay for wholesale energy during peak demand periods.  High natural gas prices like those witnessed after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita lead to higher production costs for electric providers and, therefore, higher electricity rates.

Unfortunately for Texas homeowners, electric providers have been slow to bring their prices down to reflect the stabilizing natural gas market.  It appears that companies are finally beginning to succumb to the realities of the market.  Recent offers from retail electric providers finally breached the 11 cent per kwh mark this month.  You can now find several options for electric service that cost less than 11 cents per kwh.  I have been encouraging clients all year long to avoid locking in to long term contracts with their electric provider, anticipating falling prices.

Deregulation only works if customers are willing to use their phone or computer to make the switch to a lower cost provider.  If your current provider tries to raise your electricity rate, you should definitely be contacting them for an explanation and demanding a lower rate.  Falling natural gas prices should translate into lower electric bills.  Go to www.powertochoose.com to find a lower cost provider and save yourself some money.

For more information about electricity deregulation in Texas, contact Aaron Layman.  He is a licensed real estate broker in Katy, Texas.  You can contact him directly at 281-994-5190.  You can also visit him on the web at www.AaronLayman.com.