Michigan-based company helps homeowners keep an eye on their seasonal homes
ANN ARBOR, MI – HouseSetter, a Michigan-based company, has introduced a low-cost, portable monitoring solution to give homeowners peace of mind while they’re away.
At $120 for the hardware, and service starting as low as $5 a month, HouseSetter’s canine-shaped device monitors a home’s vitals: power, temperature, and humidity. If something goes awry, owners will receive text or email alerts until the issue is resolved. HouseSetter has built-in wireless capability and operates on Verizon’s award-winning wireless network, so there’s no need for a home internet connection, Wi -Fi, or phone line.
“We want to provide people with the simplest, lowest cost way to keep an eye on their house,” said Walt Dorfstatter, CEO of HouseSetter. “And while it takes a lot of advanced technology to make that work, our intent is to deliver our service in a way that makes all that complexity invisible so we’re providing peace of mind instead of unwanted science lessons.”
Ann Arbor-based development company Logic Solutions is one of HouseSetter’s key partners in the venture. Logic’s team designed and built HouseSetter’s public facing website with an eCommerce module to enroll subscribers and manage renewals; developed the communication software between the web server and the Verizon wireless carrier; and created the client facing web UI to engage, renew, and send reports to users.
“Michiganders provide a great use case for HouseSetter,” said Matt Sarkesian, Chief Technology Officer of Logic Solutions. “When ‘snowbirds’ spend winters in another region of the country, they are unaware of power outages in Michigan. With HouseSetter, they can get alerted of issues – such as extremely low temperatures in the house that can cause pipes to freeze – and instantly take steps to avoid a major financial consequence.”
For more information about HouseSetter and Sherlock, please visit www.housesetter.com.
HouseSetter was also featured in Concentrate Ann Arbor. Click here to read about them in the news.
###
About HouseSetter
HouseSetter is a Michigan-based company established by several former founding members of OnStar. With their deep background in wireless networks and connectivity, they decided to create a simple, low-cost solution to help homeowners keep an eye on their homes while away. Given the founders’ mutual affection for “man’s best friend,” the HouseSetter device naturally took the shape of a dog. For the latest updates on HouseSetter, visit www.housesetter.com or follow them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/housesetter.
About Logic Solutions
Logic Solutions is an international, privately held, minority-owned development firm headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan. With a team of 200 experts in six offices worldwide, Logic provides eCommerce solutions, custom software, websites, and mobile application development. Visit www.logicsolutions.com for more information.
Comments 4
Do you use Cisco system? If yes please let me know and we need a quotation for a new company IT set up in Troy.
Hi Heather,
Thank you for your question! Logic Solutions does not provide IT set-up, but we would be happy to help you with any mobile or web solutions.
Does housesetter offer discounts on the purchase price, if purchasing multiple systems?
Are the program parameters stored in flash memory so that they do not have to be reset each time the unit is powered off for a period of time.?
If I am using these to monitor vacant apartments in the winter time, can I program them with the address or something to designate which property has the alert?
The quarterly plan would work well for us in monitoring any vacancies during the winter months in our apartments, namely January, February and March of each year. It looks like you might charge a fee each time I want to turn them on each season to monitor a vacant apartment, is that true? Is there a charge to disconnect them? If so how much do you charge to reactivate / deactivate each year the monitoring service for a quarter per unit.
I not not want to purchase multiple units only to discover that you almost immediately come out with your new and improved model. How long you been producing this product. Is this the first model to Market. When will you be introducing an improved version.
May I simply say what a comfort to find somebody who really knows what
they’re discussing over the internet. You definitely realize how to bring a problem to light and make it important.
More and more people must read this and understand this side of your story.
It’s surprising you are not more popular because you most
certainly possess the gift.