Smart home for rental properties
In a rented house you may think that smart home is not for you, because you are not allowed to adapt and renovate too much. If you only live in a rented house temporarily, investments such as a smart doorbell or door lock are often not worth the effort – and not even allowed. Nevertheless, there are plenty of smart home products that you can use as a tenant. Even if you live in a small house or move to another home in the long term:
- #1 Smart bulbs
- #2 Smart buttons
- #3 Smart plugs
- #4 Various sensors
- #5 Security camera
- #6 Curtains
- #7 Household appliances
- #8 Loudspeakers
There are also smart home products that are less suitable for you. Think of thermostat buttons, alarm systems, awnings and sprinkler systems for the garden. They often require a somewhat larger investment and it is difficult to take them with you when you move. For others, you first need permission from the homeowner if you want to install something, such as adjusting your heating system or installing smart switches behind the socket. The chance that the next tenant will want to take over your expensive (€€€) smart home installation for a reasonable price is not that great.
Yet there are plenty of products that you can get started with. A smart thermostat is so common nowadays that the next resident will also benefit from it. If you want, you can go one step further by building in all kinds of things that can easily be turned back to the original situation later. For example, you could replace sockets and switches and replace the old ones when you move. This just depends on how handy you are, how much you want to invest in your rental home and how long you expect to live there.
#1 Smart bulbs
Smart lighting is always a good idea. You don’t have to renovate anything for it: you only have to replace your traditional light bulbs with energy-efficient LED lights that can be controlled remotely. This also saves you on your electricity bill. If you ever move, you can easily take the lamps with you. Moreover, you can vary with color, so you can give your home a different atmosphere without painting the walls. You use light when you need to concentrate, disco effects at a party or dimmed warm light during an evening watching a movie.
In addition to Philips Hue and IKEA Tradfri, there are now also countless cheap providers, such as Aqara, Kruidvat and Action. Make sure they work with HomeKit!
#2 Smart buttons
Smart buttons are another simple addition. This allows you to control everything, even if you have roommates who have some difficulty with smartphone operation. They can simply switch on the lights and other devices in the traditional way: by pressing a button. The great thing is that you can program most of the buttons, so with two or three presses you can set additional functions. They work on a battery or generate their own energy when you press them. You can attach them to the wall with an adhesive strip or simply place them on the coffee table. We recommend the buttons from Hue and Eve, but there are also budget solutions from IKEA and Aqara, for example.
#3 Smart plugs
Another solution that is easy to install and that you can easily take with you to another home: a smart plug. You can even control an entire power strip remotely. Installation is not necessary, because you plug them into a normal socket and connect them in the Home app (or a similar app). Smart plugs are ideal for devices that cannot be controlled remotely, such as fans and light fixtures that you cannot plug in smart lamps.
#4 Smart sensors
When it comes to sensors, the choice is huge. There are dozens of sensors that you can use. The simplest solution is sensors for indoor climate: you place them in an inconspicuous place behind a plant, without having to screw them down. With such sensors you can measure your air quality and receive a signal if you need to ventilate.
With motion sensors you can also be done quickly: you can place them on a cupboard on the landing, for example, so that the light switches on as soon as someone walks around. A somewhat more difficult project is the installation of window and door sensors. You often have to apply this to the frame of your window, so that you can detect whether the window is open. If you stick this with adhesive strips that are not too aggressive, you can remove them later without damaging the paintwork.
#5 Security cameras
Forget the security cameras that you have to screw to the wall. There is plenty of choice of other cameras that you can simply place somewhere, for example high on the (kitchen) cupboard. Preferably in a place where a thief cannot just reach it without first walking through the image. As Apple users, we prefer cameras with HomeKit Secure Video because it allows you to store your images in iCloud.
#6 Curtains
It is best to only purchase custom roller blinds if you plan to live somewhere for a longer period of time. Fortunately, IKEA has fairly affordable smart roller blinds, but if you look at specialized brands such as Luxaflex, you will soon lose thousands of euros. If you want to make ordinary curtains smart, there are also some options that you can easily dismantle again. For example, read our review of the SwitchBot or our Aqara Curtain Driver review.
#7 Smart home appliances
From smart vacuum cleaners to refrigerators, almost every household appliance is now available in a ‘smart’ version. Smart is only relative, because it usually only means that you can operate them remotely. This applies, for example, to smart washing machines and ovens, where you can request the status and change the settings. With smart refrigerators you can keep track of whether certain products are still in stock, but this is still largely a manual process. This also applies to smart coffee machines, of course: you will have to put in a capsule yourself.
There are also various smart home appliances for personal use, such as smart toothbrushes. In addition, you will receive an analysis of your brushing performance afterwards. A smart scale automatically sends all measurements to an app. As far as the possibilities are concerned, the sky is the limit, although we wonder whether you will continue to use the smart functions in the longer term. For example, we once wrote a review about the Nespresso Prodigio coffee machine, but after the initial enthusiasm we never used the app again. Pressing a button is faster. So think carefully about whether it makes sense to spend extra money for the ‘smart’ version of a household appliance.
#8 Smart speakers
As far as speakers are concerned, more and more is possible. For example, many contemporary speakers are equipped with microphones, where you can give voice commands to a smart assistant. Some work with Siri, others with Alexa or the Google Assistant. You can also build a multi-room system from multiple speakers. This ensures that you can listen to the same music everywhere in the house. If you walk from the kitchen to the living room, the music will continue to play. A Sonos system is useful for Apple users, but you could also look at other speakers with AirPlay 2. Those who have little to spend opt for Google Nest speakers, because you often get them for free when you buy a package of smart lamps.
View more smart home accessories for HomeKit? We have a guide with an overview of everything that is available in the Netherlands in terms of HomeKit.
