What You Should Know About Smart Home Features in New Homes

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As we’ve seen using our smart phones, with technology, everything is quicker and easier.

You’re shopping, booking appointments, ordering from your favourite restaurant, streaming TV shows, and conducting important business from a handheld device.

That sort of convenience can be experienced with around-the-house tasks, as well.

Home buyers should ask builders they’re considering if home automation is offered as a standard feature.

A growing number of builders are now offering some degree of smart technology, elevating the buyer’s experience and boosting the home’s resale value down the road.

This lets home owners perform many tasks that were once manual from an app on their phone or tablet.

Depending on one’s level of comfort and experience with technology, this may seem intimidating.

We’ve all had an experience where a device does the opposite of what we expect.

With that said, most builders are aware of the complexities of technology and ensure you’re set up to succeed.

That typically comes in the form of a thorough walk-through of each piece in your automation package from the supplier with continued support, as needed. Depending on the builder, there may be a technology expert in-house who can help the homeowner navigate their automation as questions arise.

Here is a look at some smart home automation features one may get independently or through their builder:

Video doorbell

Feeling secure within your own home matters. One way this is achieved is by knowing who is standing at your front door.

With a doorbell camera, one can see and speak to the person on their doorstep before deciding whether or not to open the door.

Since this is done through an app on a smart device, it can be used when you’re nowhere near your home, as well.

Like any smart home feature that requires use of your smart device, it’s possible to operate these functions from any location a Wifi signal is accessible, including a sunny beach vacation.

In this case, you can build a sandcastle or collect seashells while speaking to the person at your front door. As long as the waves aren’t too loud, for all they know, you’re speaking to them from your living room.

Smart lighting

Speaking of security, this contributes, as well. Certain light sockets within the home can be controlled from your phone.

Whether you’re on vacation or want your home to appear as if people are awake and active during the night while you’re home, this comes in handy.

This feature lets homeowners switch lights on and off or schedule when they’re active from the app.

You can be on a business trip in another country, but based on the view from the curb, one might think you’re in the kitchen fetching a midnight snack.

Another advantage to this device is the ability to turn on lights before accessing a certain level of the home. For example, in the morning, a parent can light up the main floor for their child before they walk downstairs without having to worry about them finding the light switch.

Typically, this also lets people dim the lights, a useful function for adjusting brightness depending on the level of sunshine pouring through the home at that moment.

Smart speakers

There are several types of smart speakers one can add to their home, each with its own advantages.

Like the aforementioned smart device app, they too, can control your smart home features — only this time, through voice command.

Sitting on the couch and realized you forgot to turn off the lights in the kitchen? Just tell the speaker what you want it to do.

Through voice command, they can also book appointments, play music, provide directions, share the news, weather, and more.

If there is more than one such speaker in the home, it’s possible to vocalize a message that can be transferred from one to the other. Need your children who are upstairs to know that dinner is ready? Alert them without even leaving the kitchen.

Thermostat

Most people spend more money than they need to on heating their home. This is because few can keep up with manually adjusting the thermostat based on their work, school, and/or sleep schedules.

With a thermostat operated through a Wi-fi frequency, one can control the humidity, ventilation system, and temperature through a smart device or wall panel.

It’s also possible to pre-set changes to the temperature of the home. If everyone is at work and school between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., the furnace doesn’t need to be working as hard as it does when everyone returns home. By pre-setting heating fluctuations, it doesn’t have to.

Morrison Homes offers many smart home features as parts of its standard specifications.Contact a Morrison area manager to learn more.