Home security tips & guides for Texas homeowners

Short answer: you can switch home security companies anytime — the trick is timing it so you don’t pay a big early-termination fee or leave your home unmonitored for a day. If your contract is up, switching is simple. If you’re still locked in, you’ll want to weigh the cancellation fee against years of rising […]

Short answer: yes — most insurers offer a homeowners discount for a monitored security system, commonly in the range of about 5–20% (often 5–10%) on the portion of your premium they apply it to. It usually won’t pay for the system on its own, but combined with deterring break-ins and catching fires and leaks early, […]

Short answer: Wi-Fi cameras are cheaper to run and fine for most homes with steady internet, while cellular (LTE) cameras are more dependable when your internet is spotty or absent — because they don’t go dark when the router does. But the bigger reliability question most people miss isn’t about the camera’s connection at all […]

Short answer: keep your system reliable with a simple routine — a quick weekly battery-and-lens check, a monthly app update and panel test, a twice-yearly sensor and perimeter sweep, and an annual full audit. Skipping it is how people end up with a dead camera battery or a peeled-off sensor exactly when they need it. […]

Short answer: yes — visible security cameras deter a meaningful share of burglars, but they aren’t a force field. Surveys of convicted burglars consistently find that roughly half will skip a home with visible outdoor cameras, and the deterrent gets stronger when cameras are paired with an alarm, lighting, and a yard sign. The catch […]

Short answer: put cameras where intruders actually enter and move — every ground-floor door, first-floor windows, the driveway and front walk, the main hallway or stairs, and the garage — mounted 8–10 feet high and angled down. Keep them out of bedrooms and bathrooms, and never point them into a neighbor’s home. The rest of […]

For years, if you wanted a true luxury smart home, the answer was Crestron — powerful, endlessly customizable, and expensive to own. That era is ending. Josh.ai is the new standard: it does everything Crestron does, runs cleaner and easier, integrates more devices natively, has genuinely advanced audio, and costs less to own. We install […]

Short answer: luxury home automation is a fully integrated, professionally designed system that unifies your lighting, shades, climate, entertainment, security, and more under one intelligent, effortless interface — typically controlled by natural voice, elegant keypads, and a single app. It’s the difference between a house full of disconnected smart gadgets and a home that simply […]

Is your home or business inside City of Austin city limits? Then the City of Austin requires you to register your monitored security system with an alarm permit. If you are outside city limits in unincorporated Travis County, your permit comes from the Sheriff instead — see our Travis County alarm permit guide. Skip it […]

If your home or business is inside San Antonio city limits, the City of San Antonio requires you to register your monitored security system with SAPD through an alarm permit — and skipping it is the #1 way homeowners end up with surprise fines. If your home is outside city limits in unincorporated Bexar County, […]