Something to think about

This is my first post, but I've been learning a lot just by lurking. I've noticed many of you have very elaborate systems with many devices, rules, routines, etc. What would you do if you decided to sell the house? Would you sell the system with the house and tell the new owners "good luck", or would you "take it with you"?

I would take most things with me. They can keep some light switches and water valves. Unless they want to take over without my help.

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That's a great question... For me, I'd be tempted to leave all of my GE Z-Wave light switches and dimmers behind. They all operate like normal switches, so at least the lights would still "work" for the new owner. My motion detectors are all small battery powered zigbee devices. I'd take them with me, along with my water leak sensors, plug in smart outlets, etc...

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I have all the dumb devices in my attic, I will put everything back and re use the smart in my new home

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I’ll leave it up to the buyer after making it contractually clear that after I trained them on my systems, there would be no support from me after a few weeks. If they don’t want my setup, I have made sure that all the lights and outlets operate with conventional dimmers and switches. I’ll even leave them my big box of old fashioned dimmers if they want to install them. I don’t know why anyone would not want my Lutron, Hue or MyQ stuff. Hubitat may be too much for some but by the time I move, it may not be.Great question BTW.

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As I've been putting devices in and making changes to the wiring to accommodate them, I have a "revert plan" I've put together so I know what I have to do to remove everything. For example, If I've taken out a switch to use a lamp module on a switched outlet, that's listed in there.

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I would remove everything.
I’ve spent a lot of money on my kit. I would want to recreate my system in my new home, and having all the equipment to hand would be a great help.

Andy

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I just sold a house with a lot of smart switches and other devices recently.

I kept the brains/hub and kept easily removed external devices (like Aeontec Multisensor 6s, Linear Garage Door opener, etc), but left the hard to remove devices like in-wall switches and outlets.

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I did this about 7 years ago now. I was using HomeSeer at the time. I took everything with me. I labeled each and every device with the device name and room it was used in. Within a week of being in the new house, I had reinstalled just about everything with minimal modifications needed. Back then only I had about 150 devices.

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Take it with, You can buy bulk basic switches and outlets cheap to swap in as you pull these.

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I think I'd take everything with me. That's what I've done the last two times I moved anyway, though each time I have a bit more stuff. :slight_smile: Most of my setup is either battery-powered sensors, plug-in modules (like the Inovelli, GE, and now Trådfri outlets), smart bulbs, or other things that are easy to move. My hard-wired, non-bulb devices include just a thermostat, plus a couple of Z-Wave switches, which are easy to take out and replace with "dumb" switches/devices (plus it's a lot cheaper than buying new ones for my new place--and I doubt leaving them would increase the value of the house much, if at all, to make it worth it to leave, plus then you risk the new owner either wanting support or simply not wanting the system at all).

Since I've moved, I've already added a smart lock and am about to add another. I could see myself adding another switch if my wiring allows, though most of it's a bit older and I'm slowly working to get that updated, currently preventing most smart switches from working (plus I'm more of a bulb guy). I still don't see myself leaving anything if/when I ever move (I had to saw and chisel out the holes and mortises for my smart lock since my existing door didn't have any bolt at all, so just doing that should be quite easy after what I just put myself through!).

But I guess we'll see how much more I accumulate and how I feel. The hardest part for me was really putting devices back where I wanted them to go and deciding if I should re-set my hub and pair everything new or try to put things functionally back about where they were before (e.g., this motion sensor and these bulbs in the living room, which often has different lighting or a different layout, etc.). In case you're wondering, I tried to keep things in the same location and ended up re-naming and re-purposing a few devices to make it work, and I'm not sure which would have been easier (I think i chose the right path for my move). :slight_smile:

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I'm with @vjv. I kept all the non-automated switches, bulbs etc. It would just a few hours to replace all of that (labeling my current equipment so I don't have to pair it again in the new house). I've spent a lot of time and money finding what works for me, so it would be a shame to leave that behind and start over.

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I have a number of 3 and 4 way switch circuits and I'm not sure I'd want to pull out all of the add-on switches to get the wiring back to its original configuration. It was enough of a task reconfiguring the wiring to get neutrals in all of the switch boxes--not sure I want to go through the pain and suffering of getting it back to dumb switches.

All of my smart switches work as expected in "dumb mode". I'd leave the hub and all of the gear, get rid of complex rules and make sure it all worked with Alexa.

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We sold our house a year ago. We took our smart things with us. It doesn't add value to the house. The people that bought it didn't care about it. Why leave something that's not going to get used? Besides, It's now living happily in our new home. Along with a bunch of new stuff that's cool.

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Yeah Co-workers gave me a weird look when I asked if they thought this stuff would add value. They didn't think it would, even the hardwired stuff.

Replacing the hardwired stuff with dumb stuff would be theoretically easier than putting the smart stuff in. I'm comfy with 120 now. Even confusing nuetral bundles.

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I would leave all of my GE switches and dimmers since they are all non-Plus. Good excuse to buy plus versions. All sensors and the hub would come with me to the new place.

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I think that's the bit that hits the nail on the head. If the purchaser's don't value it (and by that I mean 'aren't prepared to pay for it', then the only reason to leave any of it is if the faff of removing it is worth more than the stuff is worth to you.

Last time I moved house, for example, I left two nest thermostats because un-installing it looked like more bother than I was prepared to do, and in a fit of charity, left them a couple of nest smoke alarms as well, because I didn't fancy fitting replacement cheapies and making good the mess.

Then while I was writing a short document on how everything else in the house works (why has nobody ever done this for me? - I always spend weeks trying to work out where the water stop-cocks are, and which meter is mine, when the bins get emptied, etc), I just pointed them to the nest site to re-pair themselves with the thermostats.

-- Jules

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Oh... and I left a projector screen on one wall, because it's impossible to transport without ruining, and I'd have had to make good the wall otherwise. :wink:

-- Jules

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There's also another thing that comes to mind. I believe that switches and dimmers are considered "fixtures" and unless otherwise specified in the purchase and sales agreement the property should convey with fixtures intact. Removing them is probably no different than replacing the dining room chandelier with a $5 Home Depot ceiling fixture before the new owners move in (something that happened to us with our last house purchase!).

So you'd either need to remove your smart switches, dimmers, etc. before listing the house or need some wording in the listing sheet and P&S agreement that specifically excludes them.

I sold a house a few years ago, with automation in it. I used it as a selling point, but it didn't really add any value to potential buyers.

My current house has a much larger hardware contingent. Removing all the inbuilt switches before listing would be a pain. But I've kept all the mechanical switches in case I decide to do this.

You should make up your mind before listing. Anything attached to the house is implied in the sale unless explicitly specified, in my area.

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