I was selling the supply side of gas/electric accounts for 5+ years to homes and small businesses part-time. During that time I noticed a pattern that during the end of the summer, and (especially) winter the fixed rates would go down and stay down for about a month. So the smart thing to do (if you live in a zone that de-regulated the supply side of your energy bill) is to lock in a low rate now the summer is ending and just renew around the same time next year. That way you won't get any spikes in your rates for the summer and winter when you're blasting your A/C and/or Heater.