Blog | Crawford Realty Team

How to Write a Winning Home Offer + 5 Ways to Cut Your Energy Bill

Written by Jackie Crawford-Ross | 1/6/25 5:00 AM

How to write a winning offer

Picture this: You've found your dream home, but so have others. How do you make sure your offer stands out? Easy. That's where I come in, with a proven strategy to help you come out on top. Here’s what that looks like: 

  • Writing a professional summary email: A one-page summary of your offer's key terms to demonstrate professionalism.
  • Understanding the seller's priorities: Engaging with the listing agent to discover what the sellers value, allowing us to customize your offer.
  • Fast-tracking the closing: Aiming for a 14-day closing by collaborating with a suitable mortgage lender to enhance your offer's attractiveness.

5 Ways to cut down your energy bill

I've got your personal cheat sheet with five strategies to conserve energy and elbow those extra costs out of your monthly bill:

Consider time-of-use rates.
Learn about your utility's time-of-use rates, which vary depending on the time of day. Strategically plan your energy use to save money. You can find these rates on your energy bill or the utility's website.

Leverage smart home plugs and thermostats.
Combat standby power consumption (up to 10% of your energy use) with smart switches for appliances and programmable thermostats. Schedule when they turn on and off efficiently.

Adjust the water heater temperature.
The U.S. Department of Energy says lowering your water heater temperature by 20 degrees can save 4% - 22% annually.

Efficient water heating.
Water heating is the second-largest home expense, averaging $400 - $600 yearly. Consider a $150 water heater smart controller to heat water only when needed (potentially saving 10% - 30%) and insulate your water heater to cut heat loss (saving 7% - 16%).

Monitor specific energy usage.
Make sense of rising bills by tracking energy usage and setting custom alerts. Knowing where your energy goes is the first step to making meaningful changes.

 

 

January Home Maintenance Checklist

 

 

Have questions about real estate?

Whether you're interested in purchasing your first home, moving up, downsizing, or investing, my team and I are here to be a resource to you.

Let's find you a new home. And it all starts here. Tell us a bit about your situation – buying, selling, and so forth – and one of our team members will be back in touch to discuss the details directly.