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With the emergence of the smart grid (SG), real-time interaction is favorable for both residents and power companies in optimal load scheduling to alleviate electricity cost and peaks in demand. In this paper, a modular framework is introduced for efficient load scheduling. The proposed framework is comprised of four modules: power company module, forecaster module, home energy management controller (HEMC) module, and resident module. The forecaster module receives a demand response (DR), information (real-time pricing scheme (RTPS) and critical peak pricing scheme (CPPS)), and load from the power company module to forecast pricing signals and load. The HEMC module is based on our proposed hybrid gray wolf-modified enhanced differential evolutionary (HGWmEDE) algorithm using the output of the forecaster module to schedule the household load. Each appliance of the resident module receives the schedule from the HEMC module. In a smart home, all the appliances operate according to the schedule to reduce electricity cost and peaks in demand with the affordable waiting time. The simulation results validated that the proposed framework handled the uncertainties in load and supply and provided optimal load scheduling, which facilitates both residents and power companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]