"Call CenterPoint to close service" is the wrong answer.
Almost every moving-out guide for Houston tells you to call CenterPoint Energy. That is the part most people get backwards. CenterPoint is the TDU, the regulated wires company. It does not own your account. It does not bill you. It cannot close a residential account it never opened.
The company that does own your account is your REP, the retail electricity provider you signed up with. You call your REP, give them the move-out date, and your REP submits the move-out request through the wholesale messaging system. That message is what triggers CenterPoint to schedule the final meter read.
The second thing most guides miss : if you are mid-contract on a fixed-rate plan, you are not automatically on the hook for the early termination fee. Under PUCT Substantive Rule 25.475, Texas REPs cannot charge an ETF if you provide proof that you have permanently moved out of the address served by the contract. That single rule saves Houston households hundreds of dollars a year, and very few customers know to invoke it.
How a Houston move-out actually works.
A move-out is a three-party process : you, your REP and CenterPoint. Each plays exactly one role, and skipping any one of them slows the whole thing down.
Step 1 - You
Call your REP
Five to seven days before move-out, call the customer service line printed on your bill. Give your account number, your move-out date and the forwarding address for the final bill. Ask explicitly about the move-out ETF waiver if you are on a fixed plan.
Step 2 - Your REP
Schedules the final read
Your REP submits a move-out transaction over ERCOT MarkeTrak, the Texas wholesale messaging system. That message tells CenterPoint to read your meter on the requested final date, usually within a few business days.
Step 3 - CenterPoint
Reads your meter
CenterPoint pulls the final reading remotely from the smart meter on the requested date and sends it back to your REP. You do not need to be at the home, and you do not need to call CenterPoint to confirm.
Your REP then sends the final bill, with usage through the final-read date plus any prorated delivery charges, to the forwarding address you gave them.
Step by step : who does what, when, with which documents.
A clean view of the whole sequence, from the day you give notice on your lease to the day the final bill lands in your inbox.
| Step | Who | When | Documents needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Give move-out notice | You → your REP | 5 to 7 days before | REP account number, ESI ID, new forwarding address |
| Request ETF waiver (if fixed plan) | You → your REP | Same call | Proof of move : new lease, closing docs, or utility bill at new address within 60 days |
| Move-out submitted | Your REP → ERCOT MarkeTrak | Within 1 business day | None (REP-internal) |
| Final meter read | CenterPoint | On the requested date | None, remote smart-meter read |
| Final bill issued | Your REP → you | Within 1 billing cycle | Forwarding address on file |
| Close auto-pay | You | After final bill clears | Bank confirmation of payment |
Keep one copy of your final bill and your move-out confirmation email. If a stray charge appears on a later statement, both documents prove the account was closed on the read date.
Most Houston customers pay an ETF they did not owe.
An early termination fee on a Texas fixed-rate plan typically runs $150 to $295 for a 12-month contract, sometimes scaled by remaining months. On a 24-month plan, ETFs of $20 per remaining month are common.
Under PUCT Substantive Rule 25.475, the REP cannot collect that fee if you can prove you have permanently moved out of the premises served by the contract. Acceptable proof typically includes a new lease, a closing statement for a home purchase, or a utility bill at the new address within 60 days.
The problem is not the rule, it is awareness. The waiver is rarely mentioned on the phone unless you ask. The default outcome, when the customer does not invoke it, is the ETF gets charged. UNVERIFIED estimate : a large share of Houston households who break a fixed contract for a move pay the ETF without realising they could have escaped it, simply because they did not ask. Always ask, and always send the proof in writing.
your ETF, with proof of move
How a Houston move-out actually moves through the system.
Between you hanging up the phone and the final bill landing in your inbox, four things happen behind the scenes. Knowing them helps you debug a stuck move-out.
Your REP processes the request
The customer service rep updates your account with the move-out date, the forwarding address and, if applicable, a flag for the move-out ETF waiver. You should receive a confirmation email or letter within 24 hours.
Move-out submitted via ERCOT MarkeTrak
ERCOT MarkeTrak is the Texas wholesale messaging platform that REPs and TDUs use to exchange customer events. Your REP sends a move-out transaction tagged with your ESI ID and the requested final-read date. CenterPoint receives it within minutes.
CenterPoint schedules the final read
Because every CenterPoint residential meter is an Advanced Meter, the read happens remotely on the requested date. CenterPoint then transmits the closing reading back over MarkeTrak to your REP, again within minutes of the read itself.
REP final-bills you
Your REP issues the final invoice within the next billing cycle, with usage from your last read up to the final read, prorated TDU delivery charges, the customer charge and any remaining riders. The bill is sent to the forwarding address.
If you have not received a confirmation email within 48 hours of your call, that is your signal that the move-out transaction never reached MarkeTrak. Call your REP back, do not call CenterPoint, only your REP can re-submit the transaction.
Five mistakes Houston customers make when moving out.
Each of these adds days, dollars or paperwork to a process that should take one phone call. All five are avoidable.
What if an outage hits between move-out and final read ?
Until CenterPoint logs the final read, you are still the customer of record at that meter. If a Houston-area outage hits in that window, the service is in your name, and any restoration-related charges flow back through your REP, not the next tenant. In practice this is rarely an issue, smart meters log the outage automatically and CenterPoint passes the data through.
If the outage falls on the same day as your scheduled final read, the read can be delayed. Call your REP, not CenterPoint, to confirm the new final-read date and make sure it is rescheduled rather than dropped.
Six things to do, in order.
Call your REP
Five to seven days before move-out. Use the customer service number on your bill. Do not call CenterPoint, CenterPoint does not own residential REP accounts.
Give the move-out date & new address
A specific date, not a range. And the forwarding address for the final bill and any refund of deposit.
Request the final read
Ask the REP to submit the move-out transaction through ERCOT MarkeTrak with your requested final-read date. You should get an email confirmation within 24 hours.
Invoke the move-out ETF waiver
If you are on a fixed plan, ask explicitly for the PUCT 25.475 move-out ETF waiver and follow up by emailing proof of move (lease, closing docs, or a utility bill at the new address within 60 days).
Pay the final bill
Within the due window stated on the final bill. Keep a copy, together with your move-out confirmation email, in case a stray charge appears later.
Close auto-pay
Once the final bill has cleared, log into your REP portal and remove the saved card. Then check that the next bank statement carries no further charge from the REP.
If you are moving to another address in CenterPoint territory, you may be able to keep the same REP and transfer service rather than close and reopen, see our guide on signing up for a new CenterPoint Energy account.
Common Houston move-out questions, answered.
Not if you provide proof of move. Under PUCT Substantive Rule 25.475, a Texas REP cannot charge an ETF when you have permanently moved out of the premises served by the contract. Acceptable proof typically includes a new lease, closing documents for a home purchase, or a utility bill at the new address dated within 60 days. Always ask for the waiver on the move-out call, then email the proof so there is a paper trail.
Your REP. CenterPoint Energy is the regulated TDU that delivers electricity in the Houston metro, it does not own residential accounts and cannot close one. Your REP submits the move-out through ERCOT MarkeTrak, which triggers CenterPoint to read your meter on the requested final date.
CenterPoint. Because every Houston-area residential meter is an Advanced Meter, the final read happens remotely on the date your REP requests. You do not need to be at the home and you do not need to call CenterPoint to schedule it.
You usually have two options. You can either close the current account and open a fresh one at the new address (which may trigger the ETF if you are mid-contract on a fixed plan), or ask your REP to transfer the existing account to the new address, which typically keeps the same plan, the same rate and the same contract end date. See our moving-in guide for the transfer workflow.
Typically 5 to 7 days, but check your REP's terms of service for the exact requirement. Even though the final read itself is a remote smart-meter pull, your REP needs time to submit the move-out transaction through ERCOT MarkeTrak and to coordinate the final-bill cycle.
You stay the customer of record and keep accruing charges (TDU delivery, customer charge, and any usage at the meter) until either you call your REP to close the account or a new occupant signs up with their own REP at the same ESI ID. Call your REP as soon as you realise. Most REPs can back-date a final read to the move-out date if the meter data supports it.
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