We have developed an exciting new partnership with Century 21 Estate Agents in Cobham and Esher. We are now their primary smart home consultants and it got us to thinking about the implications of selling a smarthome.

Moving home is one of those necessary evils. Whether you are moving in order to climb the ladder or just relocate to a similar property, it’s stressful. In fact, it’s regularly listed as one of the most stressful things you can do in life.

If you’re selling a property, your focus needs to be on ensuring that you get the best price for your property. There are a number of ways you can do this the traditional way – new double glazed windows, a fresh lick of paint and a bit of landscaping. However the new kid on the block which can influence the ‘saleability’ of a property is the inclusion of smart home technology.

Buy and Sell Smart

Now when we suggest installing smart components in order to increase your property’s sale value, we’re not talking about a few light bulbs and a video doorbell. These are available for general consumption and cost a few hundred pounds – unlikely to add thousands to your property.

The US are years ahead of us in the home automation market and there are a number of blogs and articles available advising how smart technology can improve the property value and what smart gadgets are ‘taking off’ in the home property market.

The main thing to think about when it comes to increasing your property’s value with Smart Technology is infrastructure.

Cabling

We are firm believers in the fact that cabling is King. While Wi-Fi is great and works beautifully with mobile and wireless devices, we like the reliability of the main components being hardwired. This leaves much less chance of the connection failing.

So, if you are doing any electrics of any home improvements, make sure you have your contractor run smart cabling which includes at least a CAT6 ethernet backbone plus think about potential speakers and TV positioning.  For a fairly small investment in cabling whilst you are doing first fix electrics you can create the basis for any home automation system. In fact, we work with a number of property developers who use our team to make all their new builds ‘Smart Ready’.

Ensuring your home is ‘Smart Ready’ will enable your new buyers to move in any existing smart components or have their own choice of system installed at their leisure.

A pre-wired home will appeal to the technologically savvy without intimidating those who are not familiar with the benefits of a smart home – and it’s better to be prepared than not.

Components

If you already have a full SmartHome system installed do you remove it and try and take it with you or leave it for the new owners?

This really depends on just how integrated the system is with your home. You probably wouldn’t rip out your cabling or remove your intelligent lighting as this would leave the property without the means to function. If you have a full automation system we would recommend leaving at least the centralised controller/s, lighting and security elements in situ with details of how to transfer the account details so that the new owners can pick up where you left off.

Be aware though that smart homes are not all just about gadgets such as the latest voice control, TVs, speakers and subwoofers…

Security features such as CCTV cameras, automated lighting and alarm systems deter burglars offering both peace of mind and a reduction in home insurance costs.  Smart meters, thermostats and automated blinds improve energy efficiency and can provide savings on utility bills.  Not forgetting integrated water and smoke detectors which can notify the homeowner and take immediate remedial action in the case of flood and fire.

A smart home – or at least smart ready – could really prove to be a key differentiator between your property and a similar one down the street and provide you a huge advantage in winning that all important sale.

Get in Touch

If you would like to speak to one of our experts about the kinds of things you can achieve with a C4 home automation system or intelligent cabling make sure you get in touch, you can call us on 0345 505 1760 or email us. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

photo credit: Control4