HOUSTON – For many Houston residents, the electric bill has become one of the most painful parts of the month. And researchers say the burden is only getting heavier.
A new study from the Urban Institute finds that households in certain Houston neighborhoods are spending about seven percent of their income on electricity alone.
“They spend more on their energy bills, and this is often because of housing quality issues,” said Anne Junod, a senior researcher at the Urban Institute. “You might have the AC cranking, but if your house has leaky windows or poor insulation, that money’s literally going out the window.”
The study looks at neighborhoods in Houston and Chicago and found that low-income residents in older homes are most at risk. The combination of environmental hazards and rising energy costs creates a “two-pronged vulnerability,” Junod said.
In Houston’s Denver Harbor neighborhood, residents and property owners are seeing the effects firsthand.
“It’s just getting higher and higher. I feel like this is not sustainable,” said George Huntoon, a property owner. “Not everyone can afford these high electric bills.”
Huntoon pays the electric bills for his tenants and says the problem is compounded by older, less energy-efficient homes.
“The people that can least afford expensive electric bills are getting whacked with expensive electric bills,” he said.
Residents say they try everything to keep bills down, from closing windows to using fans instead of heaters but the costs keep going up.
“I try to make the bill go down, but it still goes up. Didn’t work,” said Maria De La Cruz, a Denver Harbor resident. “Right now, I know my next bill is going to be higher. I know.”
For Hailey Salceda, another resident, her latest bill topped $300, despite using few appliances.
“I really don’t have that much in electronics,” she said. “If I didn’t have the bill, I could use it for my son, gas for our vehicle, or other bills that come up.”
Energy experts warn that rising electricity demand, driven by data center growth, advanced manufacturing, transportation and building electrification, and population increase, combined with aging infrastructure, means rates are likely to stay high.
“You’re facing climate and environmental risks plus just higher costs for your lowest-income folks already,” Junod said.
The Urban Institute’s research highlights a possible solution: community and residential scale distributed solar, especially when paired with battery storage. This approach could help meet local energy needs while lowering household costs, Junod said.
The institute created the Solar Opportunity Index, a tool designed to identify neighborhoods where solar could have the biggest impact. In Houston, neighborhoods in eastern and northeastern parts of the city, including Denver Harbor, Pleasantville, Magnolia Park, and Kashmere Gardens, were identified as high-opportunity areas.
“Nearly 40 percent of these properties are ready for solar now, and another 5,246 could become ready with roof repairs,” the study notes.
Experts say long-term solutions require investment in more efficient housing and modernized infrastructure, like updated insulation, new windows, and other energy-saving improvements.
But for families in neighborhoods like Denver Harbor, the reality is bracing for another expensive month.
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