What to Do With Your Smart Home Devices When You Move

Smart devices that connect to your WiFi network and provide you with full control make being a homeowner easier. But from Ring devices to Nest thermostats, there are always some smart devices left behind by homeowners when they move.

If you’re moving soon and wondering what to do if you plan to leave a device behind, we’ll explain the steps you should take to protect both yourself and the new homeowners.

Smart Home Devices Homeowners Often Leave Behind

You may want to bring along some of your smart home devices to your new location when you move, such as simple plug-in units like the Amazon Alexa, but other fixed devices may have to stay behind for the next homeowners. Here are some of the most commonly left behind smart home devices:

• Smart Thermostats: These devices allow you to control the temperature of your home with only your phone or your voice, but they are usually fixed to the wall, making them difficult to move.
• Security Cameras: Smart home security systems have improved by leaps and bounds in recent years, but given the complexity of their installation and de-installation, they’re often left behind when moving.
• Smart Floodlights: These provide you with a further measure of safety and security at home. Though since these systems are often parceled with smart cameras or other home security systems, they usually stay when homeowners move.
• Smart Locks: Smart locks are fixed to the front and rear doors of a home and allow you to unlock the door via voice or a code sent to your phone. The systems must generally be left fixed to their respective door at the time of moving.
• Smart Doorbells: Systems like a Ring doorbell provide an extra layer of security outside your home and are sometimes equipped with cameras and facial recognition technology. Like smart locks, they are usually fixed adjacent to the front door and are often left when moving.
• Smart Gardening/Irrigation Systems: These smart home devices make it easy to control the watering of plants in a large home garden via your phone or by the touch of a button. Particularly useful for if you have a large backyard or outdoor space, these systems are also usually left at the time of moving.

Steps to Take When Leaving Your Smart Home Device Behind

Knowing what to do with your smart home devices when you move is an important step in protecting your privacy and security and that of the next homeowners, too. Here are some steps you should take when moving and leaving your smart home devices behind.

Factory Reset

An important first step you can take when moving is to factory reset your smart home devices prior to leaving the property. Log out of your smart home accounts on your phone and delete the specific devices from your smart home apps (i.e. the Ring app) so they are not recognized by your phone any longer.

Methods for factory resetting your smart home devices may vary. You can reset some devices from the general settings of their respective apps, but other devices may need to be reset from within the device itself. Other devices may come with a hub or control panel from which you can perform a reset within the device settings.

Delete Your Accounts (If Need Be)

For systems that you’re leaving behind and not reinstalling in your new home, it’s important that the respective accounts for each system are deleted in order to protect your security and privacy. Plus, it can help to avoid any unnecessary charges.

However, this step is not always necessary. It will depend on which systems you expect to transfer to your new address and which you wish to leave behind. Additionally, some systems (such as Amazon Alexa or Google Home) can be factory reset, while your account can simply be transferred to your new home with the acquisition of a new smart home device.

Knowing which devices will be moved and resetting or deleting accounts from each respective system will make the moving process much simpler.

Provide Information to New Homeowners

If you’re moving and leaving behind a factory reset device, it’s important to tell the next homeowners what to expect from the devices and which systems need to be renewed with a new account holder.

By keeping the new homeowners informed and removing the data from your account and the accounts of any shared users, you can save both yourself and the new owners from any privacy and security concerns.

Curious about the best smart home options for you and your family? Find the right service or prepare for your next move with SmartMove this year.