The short answer
A basic monitored home security system from Howland Alarm starts around $550 installed. Many homes land around $800 once a few more doors and a motion detector are covered. Cameras, smart locks, and automation take it up from there. You own the equipment, and there is no long-term contract.
Panel, keypad, a few door contacts, a motion detector, a siren, cellular reporting, and the app.
The same system with more doors and windows covered, which is where most Valley homes land.
Cameras, glass-break and water sensors, smart locks and thermostats, or a larger home.
What a basic system includes
- Control panel and keypad. The brain of the system and the place you arm it.
- Door contacts on the entry doors, and often the garage service door.
- A motion detector covering the main living space.
- A siren built into the keypad. Outdoor sirens can be added, but most homes do not need one.
- Cellular reporting to the monitoring station, so the system works without a phone line or internet.
- The app, so you can arm, disarm, and get alerts from anywhere.
What moves the price
- Doors and windows. Every opening you want covered adds a contact.
- Cameras. A doorbell camera and a few exterior cameras are the most common additions.
- Extra protection. Glass-break sensors, smoke and carbon monoxide detection, water and low-temperature sensors.
- Automation. Smart locks, lights, thermostats, and garage control on the same app.
- The house. Older homes and larger homes take more sensors and more labor.
- Existing equipment. If a previous owner left a working system, we can often take it over, which lowers the cost.
Two ways alarm companies price
Most national brands give the install away or charge about a hundred dollars for it, then sign you to a multi-year monitoring contract at around $70 a month. The equipment is paid off inside that monthly bill, and the contract is what guarantees they get paid.
We do the opposite. You pay for the equipment up front, you own it, and the monthly bill covers monitoring and nothing else. There is no long-term contract. If you move, if your needs change, or if we fall short, you can stop.
Monthly monitoring
Monitoring is what turns an alarm into a response. Your system reports to redundant national monitoring stations with hundreds of dispatchers on duty, so a signal is on a screen in seconds. Monthly cellular monitoring starts at $36.75. Add-on features, like controlling the system from your phone, raise that from there. The national brands run about $70 a month on a contract. Our rate does not jump when a promotional period ends, because there is no promotional period.
Insurance
Many homeowner’s insurance carriers give a credit for a professionally monitored system, and some add more for monitored fire and water detection. The amount varies by carrier. Ask your agent before you decide; the credit sometimes covers a meaningful share of the monthly cost.
Cost questions, answered
Get your number, not a range.
A free home security analysis takes about an hour and ends with a written quote.
