Smart devices are more commonplace in homes today than ever before, and it’s because homeowners thrive on technology. In a society where the latest iPhone is discarded within months of purchase when the new iPhone is launched despite the $700 price tag each time, it’s not shocking so many homeowners want all the best in technology found in their homes. Not only does smart technology make it easy to keep homes safer, it also helps make homes more affordable. No longer do homeowners need to leave their heat or air running on vacation so they don’t come home to a miserable home. Now there are devices that control most every aspect of a home from anywhere in the world, and homeowners want a piece of that. Any homeowner looking to sell their home might be interested in learning which tech devices are worth installing prior to listing. They mean big bucks and better sales for most.
Smart Thermostat
Imagine leaving on vacation and turning the air or heat completely off for two weeks while you’re gone. Many homeowners turn it up or down to keep it from kicking on so much, but they still come home to a house that’s entirely too hot or too cold, and they’re miserable. With a smart thermostat, it’s easy to turn the air or heat off before you leave and kick it back on the morning you’re due to arrive back home. It’s been off the entire length of your trip, but you control what you come home to.
Smart Doorbells
In the past, the doorbell meant someone was coming over to play, to visit, or to have a good time. It was exciting. Today, it’s just another nuisance waking up the napping children, causing the dog to bark, or giving homeowners a moment of panic if they’re not expecting anything. With a smart doorbell, you can watch who is at the door on your smart device, talk to them through the camera, and even leave instructions. The delivery man who always leaves your packages in plain sight is someone you can now instruct to leave elsewhere because you can see and speak to them from the doorbell from anywhere in the world. This device is also great when your home is for sale by owner. Homeowners selling their own house often find people stop and ring the bell anytime they’re in the neighborhood to find out about seeing the house, and you can see who’s there before you answer.
WeMo Switch
Leaving the house without turning off your flat iron, the steam machine, or something else you are afraid might burn your house down bothers you all day. Did you or didn’t you turn it off? With this switch, you eliminate the need to go home and check or feel nervous all day. You plug it into the outlet on any wall, plug your items into it, and it connects to your home’s WiFi. Now you can control it from your phone. If you put one in any outlet you use in the bathroom, to iron, or to plug in other potentially dangerous items, you need only turn on your phone and turn off the power to those devices on your app just in case. You can take them with you when you move, or leave them for new homeowners.
Selling your home is easier and more profitable when you have smart devices hooked up. So many younger buyers are more tech-savvy than they’ve been in the past, and they want the latest in technology in any home. Do your research to find out what you can add to your own home to increase the value prior to listing. It might just be the make or break moment addition you’ve been looking for to set your home apart from others.
Smart door locks are also very cool.
With the August Door lock, you can lock/unlock your deadbolt with your phone.
You can also give out virtual keys that expire so if someone is going to look at the house you can assign one so you don’t have to be there.
We recently sold our place and had installed a Nest smart thermostat a couple of months before which really sealed the deal with our eventual buyer.
They were really sold on the idea of the system ‘knowing’ when to turn on the heat based on our usage patterns and heating habits.
An amazing return on our initial investment of a couple of hundred bucks.
It’s definitely on our list of ‘to-buy’ items again as soon as we’ve decorated the new place – hopefully it’ll be installed before winter arrives!