Your Needs, Your Budget: Choosing a Home Security System for Your Home

All of us want to feel safe and secure in our homes and one of the best ways of helping to achieve that peace of mind is by installing a home security system.

It is always a good idea to take the time to consider what your needs are and what your budget is so that you can end up buying a system that matches the criteria you set out.

Monitored or not? 

The fundamental difference in many alarm systems is whether they are monitored or not. A monitored alarm is hooked up to a private company who are paid by you to watch over your system and monitor any alarm activations or suspicious circumstances 24 hours a day.

An alarm system that is not monitored is cheaper because you pay the installation costs and perhaps an annual maintenance charge but you are on your own when it comes to acting on any alarm activation.

Benefits of a monitored system 

house-alarm-systems

The majority of people will argue that a monitored system is the best way to go when you consider the level of protection you are getting and the peace of mind that it can bring.

Some of the main advantages of a monitored alarm system are –

The system has sensors that are triggered when a door or window is opened and the alarm has been turned on

Whereas a bell will go off immediately on a standard alarm system, a monitored system reduces the prospect of a false alarm by giving the homeowner the chance to evaluate and deactivate before further action is taken by the monitoring company.

With a monitoring system you always have a third party intervention back-up in place so the company will attempt to call the homeowner and verify that everything is ok before calling the police or emergency services on your behalf.

Another key benefit to consider is that in the worst case scenario and you are being forced to cancel the alarm signal, you can provide a pre-arranged code to the alarm monitoring company who can cancel the alarm but alert the police without the intruder being aware that they have been detected.

What you need for a home alarm 

There are a number of key components that you will need in order to set up an efficient and effective alarm system.

The control panel can be tailored to your needs and can include a panic alarm, all of which will be connected up to a central monitoring station.

Most alarm companies will provide a set of touchpads and key fobs which work on a passcode system so you have easy access to activate or disable your alarm wherever you are in the house.

Door and windows sensors are fitted around the house to monitor any possible intrusion and despite the fact that the alarm can be silent, you can have a siren to provide an audible deterrent as well.

Motion detectors are also fitted around the home to detect any movement once the alarm has been set and you can also have video monitoring in the form of streaming or CCTV if you have a larger budget.

Research 

If you still not sure about what type of alarm system to choose, do some local research including asking your local police department about response times and false alarms. The police can sometimes withdraw support if there are too many false alarms at a property, which is another reason to consider using a monitored system in order to reduce the risk of this happening.

Once you have all the facts and figures available and got a couple of quotes, you should be in a position to choose a system that suits your needs and budget.

About the Author : Charles Wells is a former small town police officer. He now spends his time with his grandkids and by blogging online. To learn about your home insurance needs, just go to this website. 

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