Sponsored: Is your electricity bill too high?

Energy Choice Experts has been helping neighbors and other Texans save money on electricity since 2015.

If anything smokes more than our red-hot summers, it’s getting burned by escalating electricity bills.

It’s happening to all of us. Many folks are paying twice the rates we did last year.

But for a low, one-time cost of $35, there’s a Dallas-based solution for finding the lowest-cost annual electricity plan for your unique electricity usage.

For this small fee, Energy Choice Experts shops the market and tells you the absolute best electricity contract to sign. Energy Choice Experts monitors daily price changes and its recommendation is custom-tailored to your home’s electricity usage.

And the plans ECE recommends save you more — generally much more — than the $35 one-time annual fee Energy Choice Experts owners and neighbors Scott Hundley and Greg Steagall charge on the website.

Electricity prices are at record highs this summer, Hundley and Steagall say. Neighbors want to know how to find the most affordable electricity plans for their home-use situations.

Here’s how: Use Hundley and Steagall’s no-lose shopping service the next time your current electricity contract is up for renewal.

Energy Choice Experts individually analyzes each client’s previous 12 months of electricity usage to determine the electricity provider offering the lowest-cost plan for that usage scenario. And they guarantee clients the best deal at the time the research is completed, generally within a day of your request.

Some might say: “But I can find my own best deal.”

Maybe. But not likely. And not without spending hours scouring the market and plugging numbers into a spreadsheet.

Here are some common mistakes many of us make when shopping for our own best electricity package, Hundley and Steagall say.

First, re-upping with the same company you are currently using. “The market rewards new customers with nice deals, not returning ones,” Hundley says. “Typically, the cost is 20% higher for returning customers, so don’t re-commit to the same company two years in a row.”
Second, falling for promises of free giveaways. Electricity companies have big marketing budgets. If they offer something for free, it’s probably not. They’re getting the money out of you another way. That “free” Nest thermostat or “free” energy at night? Who do you think is ultimately paying for it?
Third, being misled by deceptive marketing. For example, electricity companies often highlight rates that apply only if you use exactly 1,000 kWh every month. They intentionally hide that the rate is much higher if you use more or less than 1,000 kWh any month.

Hundley and Steagall say if your contract is expiring and you don’t sign another one, your electricity provider will put you on a month-to-month variable plan. Remaining on this plan is likely to be a mistake, too.

Just imagine you’re on a variable price plan, and we have another February freeze like the one a couple of years ago — your price can shoot through the roof, and there’s not much you can do about it except pay the bill.

Why pay Hundley and Steagall to research which energy plan is best for you?

They aren’t energy brokers, who earn commissions getting you to sign up for a plan; they work for you. They receive zero compensation from energy companies and have only your best interests in mind. “We know how to shop plans. We give unbiased advice on the best deal for you. We guarantee that no one can find a lower total-annual-cost plan than we do. If anyone finds a lower rate than we do, we’ll refund the $35. It’s a no-lose prospect.”

These Dallas neighbors are local, with friends and families here, church memberships, and kids who have graduated from local high schools. Scott retired last year from a 32-year purchasing career at Texas Instruments, and Greg has 28+ years in the energy industry. They began Energy Choice Experts seven years ago to provide a much-needed service for friends and neighbors without charging an arm and a leg. “Everyone is going through this, and most people don’t know what to do. There is marketplace confusion; we provide local and statewide solutions.”

And what do Energy Choice Experts’ customers say?

Lake Highlands residents Mike and Jane McCurdy have used Energy Choice Experts for 3 years.

“Prior to using ECE, we were buying electricity from the same big-name electric company for years. We didn’t know that electricity companies charge their longtime customers higher rates than they charge their new customers,” the McCurdys say.

“We saved a lot of money using ECE. Now we use them every year and recommend them to all our friends!”

Lakewood residents Roger and Karen Hohnstein have used Energy Choice Experts for 7 years.

“This service is fantastic,” Roger says. “Researching and analyzing electricity plans takes a lot of time, but ECE makes it so easy. They crunch all the numbers and find the lowest-cost plan for me each year. Totally worth the $35 cost of their service.”