 
Builders Need to Finish New Security Systems By Frank Fourchalk
It’s 2008 and time for home builders to complete security system pre-wires. I don’t understand the logic of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a new home, but with an incomplete alarm system.
For some reason new home buyers have grown to accept this irrational thinking. Imagine advertising a new house with ambient lighting, granite counter tops, crown moldings and an unfinished alarm system. It doesn’t make sense but it’s happening all over the country.
I liken it to purchasing a home without light fixtures. Home buyers won’t tolerate substandard workmanship in most areas of a new home, however it seems to be the norm to accept an incomplete in the home security department.
Sadly, hardware and labour costs mount up for the homeowner when alarms are completed after the fact. So why don’t builders finish the job? The answer is simple: expense. It’s all about the supply and demand. If the demand isn’t there, why bother supplying?
So why aren’t new home buyers demanding complete alarm systems? Honestly, I don’t know the answer to that question, but I do know that if home buyers don’t start making the request, they won’t be seeing them anytime soon. I can assure you if I were to purchase a new home, I would negotiate a complete alarm system before the ink hit the paper.
New home builders and real estate agents should be capitalizing on the importance of finished alarm systems for their clients. They would be profiting from a very small investment, and would be passing on great benefits to their buyers. Among the included features, alarm systems should include contacts on all locked doors and windows, including the upstairs. All too often upstairs windows are neglected, leaving holes in the home’s security. Motion detectors need to be strategically placed to assure no movement within the home goes undetected.
Builders need to get involved with alarm companies to discuss locations of sirens. These noise-makers will ward off an intruder faster than anything.
A well-planned alarm system will have a good mix of external, as well as internal, sirens. External sirens are usually installed in a concealed area like an attic or under the roof eaves, and direct the sound into the neighbourhood. An internal siren is usually installed on an inside wall, with the intention of blasting the crook out of the house. Internal siren units are unobtrusive and designed to fit in with your home’s decor – looking similar to a smoke detector when installed.
If a home buyer is promised a completed alarm system from their builder, they need to get a schematic of the complete system, including locations of all window contacts, motion detectors, smoke detectors, glass breakage detectors, central processing unit and keypads. This will allow the home purchaser to approve the completed system before it is installed.
Upload date:
April 13, 2008 9:16 AM
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