How smart is your home?
Or if you are from Boston: Is your home wicked smaht?
As a lifelong nerd, I’ve mostly pooh-poohed “Smart Home” labeling, since to me, this is just “technology.” I feel all of of this is just a natural evolution of the appliances and devices that are in our homes.
Turns out I’ve been around smart home technology for 20+ years! When I worked at Excite@Home (1999-2001) they had an entire “Interconnected Home” display in NYC - obviously were way ahead of their time. I remember it featured a refrigerator that would keep track of your shopping list and display it on the door - it seemed like such a far out “Jetson‘s” idea. After all, this was before iPhones and tablets. Now, 20 years later, a Smart Fridge is pretty commonplace!
In 2011 I gave my sister a Google Nest Thermostat for her vacation home. She could see & control the temperature from her phone. She could turn up the heat a day or few hours before arriving at the home and the energy savings were noticeable! For a vacation home, a smart thermostat is perfect because it notifies when the Wi-Fi (and maybe power) is out and it is easy to confirm the home is maintaining a safe temperature. I’ve since added Nest Thermostats to my home. I am an absolute convert on Smart Thermostats and think home should have one!
Nest Thermostat
So let’s talk about what makes a home “Smart?” The industry defines a Smart Home as
having Internet connectivity, either home temperature controls or security and 2 additional smart connected devices
As a REALTOR®, I’d refine that to only refer to Smart Devices stay when the home sells. That is, things that are likely permanently attached to the home: thermostats, doorbell, door lock, attached security systems, connected household appliances (fridge, dishwasher, washer, dryer), installed smart light switches or outlets.
Anything a home seller might take with them shouldn’t be included in the “smart home” definition. A seller will likely take their Alexa or Google Hub; smart light bulbs (unless part of a built in fixture); their Roomba; and if not wired in, maybe even their smart doorbells and monitoring systems.
During the home buying or selling process, this is something to discuss with your real estate professional. It is important to be clear on what is and is not included in the home sale whether this is a smart device or not!
What Smart devices or appliances do you have in your home? Which do you wish you had? We are coming into the holiday season and the prices are always coming down on Smart Home tech. Maybe it is time to consider making some smart upgrades!
