We live in a safe neighborhood but all of a sudden within a few months, there is a rash of break-ins in my neighborhood... I mean a lot! Houses, cars... it's someone in the neighborhood (one of the neighbors caught 3 kids trying to break in her house last night and chased them down the street. Lost them but at least someone hopefully got a decent look at the culprits)... anyway... I'm a SAHM and every time I have to leave the house, I worry that I will come home and find my house ransacked (I moved from my old neighborhood because my house was burglarized twice (not to mention my car was broken into also). So I know what it's like to feel victimized so my concern is totally justifiable (especially since it seems like the people doing this are working on hitting every house on the street). I mentioned looking into a home security system to my husband and he gave a nod like, yeah maybe. What is involved in installation and what are the average prices? Is it worth it? Are you charged extra for a bigger house or certain features? I looked at Slomins website and it's $31 a month plus $300 deposit for 5 year contract... Are all monitoring companies like this, price wise and the deposit? We can't spend a lot, but I don't want to go cheap and 'get what I paid for' kinda thing either. Recommendations and suggestions? What do they do to install everything. Is there a lot of drilling involved? I am clueless on this subject. As of now, we ALWAYS lock our doors all the time, even if I am going right back out the door, I lock it behind me. It's become a habit and I started locking my back storm door as well as the inner door and we are keeping the backyard light on all night too.
BTW, we are in Bucks County Pennsylvania (Eastern PA).
Well I work for ast and installation is 99 and I see where some people get that waived. For regular monthly monitoring, if you have say all of downstairs covered, no more then 40 s month, and you can pay monthly, quarterly, semi- annually, or annually. Where ther most money comes into play is when you add video
The alarms are easily installed. They are glued possibly so there are two sensors that match up to each other when a window or door is closed. We have the sensors on all windows that move. There is also a noise detection, so if a window is broken the alarm will sound. At the same time, any loud noise could set off the alarm, much like a car. If the alarm goes off, security calls the house via the key pad and we have to give a name and password. If you don't answer, they will dispatch security.
For $300 I think you should call around. I can understand an installation charge, but a deposit with a contract seems unreasonable. What is the deposit applied toward? Yes our monthly charge is about $35/month.
And yes, it is that time of year for break ins. It always seems to increase when the weather is nice and the doors and windows are open for fresh air.
Be sure to shut your blinds too. You don't want anyone to steak out the house and see what is in there, point of entry, and confirm no one is home.
I was told to talk to anyone who knocks at the door through the door so they know there is someone home. If they think you are not there, they could kick in the door while you are home...not good.
HI T.,
I've always had a security system and for me personally it's been more about the fire alarm then the burglar alarm but having it is most certainly a piece of mind. We've been fortunate not to have been burglarized but having it on at night or while I'm home alone with the kids gives me a piece of mind. We always used a smaller company and I've done a TON of price comparisons and find that even though you pay a little bit more in equipment up front, the cost of monitoring is a lot less in the long run then with a big corporation and there's no long term contracts. The other thing is that you get someone who is really invested in working with you to get the most bang for your buck. We're also in Bucks Co and we use Mike at HI Universal ###-###-####. Good luck and I hope they catch whoever is terrorizing your neighborhood!
Some don't require a "deposit" but do require a 3 yr contract. Some give you free equipment or a discount on equipment w/ the contract while others may not.
We use Melaleuca Security. It is 24.95 a month for the basic. The equipment amount depends on what you need or want and there are some extra options included in the basic monitoring and there are some upgrades. We love ours. We did pay for the equipment that was reasonably priced and it is ours.
I've had 2 different companies-ATD and Guardian. Both offered free installation of basic equipment with a 3 year contract, then about $30 plus tax a month for monitoring. The free equipment is usually 1 master box, a couple of door alarms, and a motion sensor. If you want more than that - extra master box or sensors on every window or integrated smoke detectors, then you will have to pay for that. In my house, it wasn't necessary for anything extra because my floorplan is pretty open, and the motion sensor can 'see' most of the downstairs. Another company commonly used in my area is Vector security, and I think it's about the same.
