When you make an offer remember you can always go up so start low. As you make a higher bid tell the agent why your offer is low e.g. the house needs renovating, it's slightly above your price range and you are stretching the affordability as much as you can, it's in a less desirable area than you would have liked, etc. Reasons are important when giving your price.
The next method is using a whole house meter. This is a way for you to have an accurate record of how much electricity you've used. The installation is a bit more complicated than the simple watt-hour meters, but this way you can monitor the entire electrical usage of your home. The Energy Detective has a good installation video on their website that will detail the exact steps to install one of their meters, so you'll know if you'd be comfortable installing one yourself, or having someone else do it.
Once you have an offer accepted you will probably have a survey done. Depending on the results of the survey, you may be able to negotiate again on the price. If the survey brings up factors that will be costly to you then you may be able to get some of the costs off the asking price.
There are particular things you want to look for when you call these companies. Ask them about their towing policy. Do they tow salvaged cars for free? Most how much do u get for scrapping a car buyers should offer free tows for scrap cars they are buying. scrap car removal may be a bad sign if the company charges a fee to pick up your vehicle. Also, check for licenses, certifications, references, websites, and online reviews. This can also help determine which company can offer the best deal and who can be trusted the most.
Frankly, if your price is already among the lowest, you may not need to drop it further to get sales from those who might otherwise want a price reduction. Simply point out how your price is already lower than what competitors charge, for a lot of people, that will be enough.
A what? You thought you were looking for a property? More than the property, you are looking for a distressed seller - someone who is eager and needs to sell quickly. As in they needed to sell yesterday.