[smt88]

1) Home automation products are pretty immature and can be frustrating. Some are dangerous. Almost all are privacy nightmares. If you have extra cash and enjoy tinkering, it may be worth it.

2) If you don't have big reserves of cash, get great insurance and a home warranty, like American Home Shield. Reviews are mixed, but it's saved me money and given me peace of mind.

3) If you live in a humid place, dehumidify. Humidity is easy to prevent and can become a nightmare.

[byoung2]

Definitely do the home warranty. We've had one major issue each year that was completely covered by the warranty that would have been thousands to repair.

Home automation is still early stage so be prepared for lots of bugs and tweaks. I replaced every switch in my house with smart switches and many outlets and light fixtures as well, connected everything to Alexa (using Insteon). Some niceties are timing outside lights to sunrise/sunset and using motion sensors to turn off lights in unoccupied rooms.

Depending on where you live (I'm in hot and sunny Los Angeles) invest in artificial grass and solar...They have nearly paid for themselves in 4 years.

If possible, study and upgrade your wiring and plumbing before you move in and walls are easy to break. Upgrade your electrical panel to 200A if it's not already that big and install a 100A subpanel on the other side of the house...it will make any future upgrades so much easier.