Bottom Line: With the profile of today’s homebuyers in the metro cities is getting younger, there are many takers for smart homes since young buyers prefer smart technological conveniences at the finger tips.
A sales person enters a residential apartment with appointment to one given flat owner but then starts cold calling to others as well. How can this irritating sales pitch be stopped even though the guy has entered the premises with bonafide permission?
The answer to this is the security system that is high tech and enables the security guard to monitor whether the sales guy is entering the same flat for which he has been given the access. Sounds a bit ideal but it is happening with the smart homes which are a built-to-suit answer to such day-to-day convenience for the home owners.
While you are in the office how you do know whether the domestic help is not misusing the appliances and adding to your power bill? Whether the air conditioner is not being unnecessarily kept on to make a dent on your pocket?
Historically, the civilisations have grown along the two Ts-Trade and Town and now the Third T, that is Technology is making the lives easier for those who are opting for it.
But wait! A smart home though is technologically enabled it is yet not just a digital integration that makes a home worth being called smart. It has to have the element of green building that minimises the use of power and also has to be customised to convenience. It has much more than plain digital integration and though Indian market has been a bit late where the concept could gain ground; it is increasingly attracting the acceptance in the collective consciousness.
Smart home buyers’ preferences
Integration of state of the art technology in the electrical devices that enhances the experience as well as makes life easier
Remote controlled home networking and monitoring systems as part of a smart home
Smart homes to be only technology enabled but also customised to the individual needs and requirements
Connecting energy efficient and environmentally sustainable buildings to basophilic architecture
Completely automated with remote control of electricity/equipment’s, edutainment features, communication features and smart appliances
Take the case of Rakshat Shah who is on the lookout for a house somewhere around Andheri. This financial analyst himself being a tech savvy wants a house that is not just having component of digital integration but having truly functional as a smart home.
His initial thoughts that he may not get a real smart home as projected by the developers proved to be wrong as the primary market search led him to many projects fulfilling the desirability index of being called as smart home. His tech savvy temperament and choice apart, today he is also weighing his options and evaluating as to whether it is wise to invest slightly more in a property that offers functional smartness.
Fortunately, the cost & benefit analysis of this financial analyst himself made him realise that it is better to go for a smart home even if it costs more at the time of purchase due to add-on smart quotient. This is because such homes are not only cheaper from the long term sustenance point of view but also very convenient in today’s fast-paced world where time is a constraint. He believes smart home is an idea whose time has come.
“Smart home equips an average home buyer like me with automation and ease. For instance, I can operate lights, electronic equipments, security and practically everything from my mobile phone only. Who would not love the convenience of such high tech homes that are safeguarded by technology to save the time and money with a sense of security and peace of mind. In the absence of joint family and related social security nowadays smart home today is the evolution that is actually need based,” says Shah.
Another proud home buyer of smart home Rachna Dholakiya, who has recently bought such apartment in Versova, makes it a point to demolish the myth that smart homes are costly and meant for the ultra luxury buyers only. According to this advertising professional, till very recently she lived under the impression that smart homes are meant for only the ultra-rich in the society who could spend more for their desirable smart quotient with the apartment.
However, she got exposed to the property reality that the smart homes are increasingly becoming affordable and hence being considered and opted-for by many upper middle class and salaried class families as well. It has a lot to do with the penetration of technology in the housing sector and the growing security concerns in the urban areas. More and more people are going for automated homes as it comes with the option of customization to meet the unique safety & security needs and budget constraints of families.
“Today, there are a number of projects that are offering some aspect of smart index as an add-on feature for the buyers to make sure that the project can be positioned as the smart homes. What we were earlier doing to get our homes automated through private players who specialized in automation of homes is today being done by the developers. The best part of the deal is that since the developers are doing it holistically for the entire project, such services also suit the budget of cost conscious buyers. It is not necessarily about high end projects but the security concerns across the segment are being addressed by the homes that are technologically high end,” says Dholakiya.
The success of any concept, innovation or idea in real estate is subject to the buyers’ approval and acceptance. Going by the buyers’ vote of confidence it seems that the idea of smart home has gained ground in India. These homes are now coming up with a plethora of new technologies and have begun to find their ways into homes not just owned by the richest exclusively.
Technology vendors and real estate players from different domains have started developing solutions capable of being easily integrated into home environments. IP based technologies are making substantial strides in the area of smart home. As it brings ease in urban life and makes long-term financial sense also to invest, smart homes are the buzz word now.
