Home Security Costs

Before investing any serious time researching home security systems, you should first talk to your local police. Ask them how quickly they will respond to a home security alarm. The length of the response time may affect your purchase decision. The next decision is whether you want to hire a home security company to install the system or install it yourself. Simple home security systems consisting of a few sensors and controls are easy to set up. Elaborate home security systems are not and usually require the services of a professional home security company.

Your homeowners insurance company may be able to recommend home security companies and give you an insurance discount if you install a home security system. You could also check with your local Better Business Bureau to find reputable companies. You may also want to talk with any neighbors who have home security signs their yards. 

You should obtain system price quotes from three home security companies. Specifically, you should inquire about the cost of leased versus purchased equipment, installation costs and the monthly fees to monitor the system. An unmonitored alarm system is not particularly helpful in deterring someone who is trying to burglarize your home. Your home should be monitored live 24/7, and an alarm trigger should immediately send an alert to the closest police department. Moreover, find out whether the company charges for false alarms and copies of alarm reports. Whatever company you choose, be sure that it is one that is certified by Underwriters Laboratory, Factory Mutual or some other reputable testing laboratory. 

You should consider buying a wireless alarm system if it is available in your area. A wireless system has several advantages. First, the system does not require a hard phone line. This is important because a burglar can easily cut a phone line and interrupt the alarm signal to the monitoring company. Second, installing a wireless home security system is much less complicated than a traditional home security system. This means that you can probably do it yourself. Third, a wireless system enables you to arm or disarm it remotely using a mobile phone or other similar device. 

Depending on the level of its sophistication, a self-installed, hardwired home security system will run between $50 and $300. A similar wireless system will cost between $250 to $750 or more. The average cost of an advanced home security system installed by a home security company is about $1,500. Monitoring fees are about $500 per year. Be careful about long-term service contracts from a home security company. They can be expensive to cancel. 

Last updated on May 2, 2017