If any of you have followed me for a while (especially on IG stories…) then you know I LOVE a good, dramatic story.
Well, apparently, you do too!
About 6 months ago during a Q&A Tuesday live video, we shared that someone had tried to break into our house the night before. I didn't go into too much detail because, firstly, I was still pretty shaken by the whole situation. But also, because I was extremely frustrated and disappointed with our security cameras that (regardless of the fact that they were facing DIRECTLY at the perpetrator) captured NOTHING of the ordeal and left us with a lot of questions. *Enter whiny voice and foot stomping*. I knew I couldn't go into much detail at the time until I had found a security solution I felt good about sharing (since I'm VERY protective over what I promote to my Freebs family!), and promised y'all that when I DID find a solution, I would not stop until I got you the BEST deal on it.
AND I DID!
*Note: When you click the links in this post, we may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
But first, the dramatic tale I PROMISED to tell you about!
Watch the video online or click and watch below, then head back here for the deal you've all been waiting for!
Pretty crazy, right??
Again, as explained in the video, I'm not typically a fear-based person, and I'm not looking to scare anyone into making any rash decisions. But, burglars aside, we love the peace of mind and close calls that our security system, cameras, smart thermostats, and doorbell camera have given us (see my additional list of stories below! You won't believe some of them…) and I'll never NOT have a security system again.
Now, here are recapped details of the exclusive Vivint Smart Home deal I snagged:
- FREE Doorbell camera! Even if this is the only camera you have around your house, it is worth it! It is valued at $230 and you can get it FREE using the code FUNDBC.
- Free activation! (We didn't get the luxury of free activation when we initially signed up, and trust me, be happy for this one.)
- Not to mention, we have our very own Freebs Customer Support Team and website, because I did NOT want you to be stuck on the phone for hours with anyone who didn't know what deal we were talking about. WOO HOO for great customer service!
- And, as a reminder, they are not just in Utah, they have nation-wide service.
Why I hunted Vivint down like a rabid dog…
It took me months (and a crazy story of how I FINALLY got in touch with the right person, and it might have involved an airport security line, believe it or not…), but here's why I was so insistent on working with Vivint on providing this deal for you:
- We have paid personally for them for years, and are currently the only security company we use. I have no intention of switching, so I can put my literal stamp of approval on their products and services, which says a lot.
- Vivint's monitoring centers provide protection with the latest technological equipment 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
- Control any part of your system and check up on your home right from your smart phone, computer, or tablet.
- By installing a Vivint Smart Home System, you may save on your homeowners insurance. BE SURE TO CHECK INTO THIS, Frugal Freebs!!!
- They also have smart thermostats that you can manage automatically or on the app from your phone. This has saved us so much on our utility bills, by better managing the temperature better within our house.
Now, since I didn't want my video to be 8,000 minutes long but I have SO MANY juicy stories to tell, here are a few good ones for anyone who's curious…
Additional crazy situations (too good not to share…):
- Our 5 year old pulled a dresser down on himself on accident (obviously). It was terrifying, and could have been fatal. I wasn't home, a babysitter was watching the kids, and she wasn't sure what to do and whether he was ok. I was frantically on my Nest app trying to look back at the camera footage, since he has a camera right in his room, in hopes of being able to see what had happened and if I needed to call an ambulance. I was able to watch live video and nothing else. It saved nothing of the incident, except for one still shot of him as he initially entered his room. It was extremely disappointing and THANK GOODNESS he was ok, no thanks to the camera that COULD have helped a lot.
- Bubba and I were in a different country on vacation and Bubba's parents were babysitting. Our house alarm went off at 4am, which was in the afternoon where we were, so we saw the alarm notification on our phones. THANK GOODNESS, and thank you Vivint. Our app told us that our kitchen door was open, so we flipped to our Nest camera (we hadn't switched to Vivint yet) to see what was going on. The camera didn't show us anything other than live footage of a wide open door. To this day we have no clue if someone tried to break in, or if the wind blew it open (which has happened before, and the door wasn't latched all the way, so thankfully we feel pretty confident about the wind being the culprit). Again, so frustrating though. Also, Bubba's parents never even heard the alarm because it was too far away from our bedroom and they are hard of hearing. We have since replaced our Nest cameras with Vivint (that are always recording), and have added a second panel in our bedroom so we can hear it, and control it/talk to Vivint without having to go downstairs to do so.
- A GOOD situation was just the other week. Our alarm went off, again at 4am (what is it with 4am???), telling us that our garage door had been opened. This time we weren't even freaked out, because we had everything we needed in place to make sure we were safe. We checked all our outdoor and garage cameras from the safety of our room, we had the panel right next to us so we could communicate with Vivint without having to go downstairs, and we saw that no one was nor had been around our house, and realized it was just a weird power glitch that made the door open. Had the alarm not gone off our door would have been wide open all night and we never would have known.
- Just 2 weeks ago I was out for the day and had a babysitter at home. I popped on the cameras to peek and see how things were going, and caught her, DEAD ASLEEP on our couch in the middle of the day while my baby girls were unsupervised. I was able to go back on the Vivint camera footage and see that, prior to falling asleep with my children right next to her, she had been on the couch on her phone for HOURS. You better believe she won't be coming back. I never would have known; she was a favorite babysitter of my kids, and my babies (of course) never said a thing about it.
- One time I was held up in traffic and Priya beat me home. I was so worried about her being on my porch by herself for 15 minutes in the cold. Luckily I saw her on my doorbell camera, talked to her through it and explained I was on my way home, unlocked the front door for her from my Vivint app, locked it back up when she went inside, then talked with her on the various house cameras (which are two-way), asking her all about her day and even had her show me her homework to keep her occupied (and safe) until I got home.
- One time we were on a date and our babysitter texted me in a panic because she was upstairs checking on the sleeping kids, and heard noises on our main floor. We had her lock herself into our bedroom, and Bubba got on our cameras on our Vivint app, while I had the phone primed and ready to immediately issue the police (another perk of the app). He checked all the footage and realized it was just the dog that had knocked something over. It felt so nice to be able to be able to keep our kids (and poor babysitter!) safe while away.
- Don't even get me started with benefits of our security system when Bubba is out of town and I'm freaked out in our house by myself…
Too many situations to count, I'm just grateful for the peace of mind and confidence.
So there you go!
There are my crazy stories, and the hope that this one post and video helps SOMEONE, somewhere, prevent a potentially scary situation. Either way, hopefully it appeased your curiosity about what happened that night.
Either way, stay safe out there, Freebs!!
Ps…Robbers, if you're reading this, don't even bother coming to the Page household. We are locked and loaded, more prepared than Macaulay Culkin. Go waste your time on someone else.
XOXO
Thanks so much for this deal! We had an incident the other day that shook me to my core. We have looked into home security before, and it would’ve cost way more money. I called Vivint and they installed their system today. I love it so much already!
Hi! Is is deal still good? (The promo for the doorbell camera) thanks!!
You mentioned you’ve had Vivint for years, but what system where you using during the potential break in? I’m curious because you said you didn’t get any footage of the perpetrator.
We had Vivint, but it was a Nest camera we had set up in that room…which is why we have switched over to a fully Vivint system.
We just signed up for Vivint and what a great deal and customer service !! You guys rock
So glad to hear it!
Hi Jordan,
I have been following you for a couple of years now. Last week, we had an interesting situation arise which made me want to get a home security system installed in our home. I happened to see a story you shared on Instagram about Vivint just prior to this happening and, since I trust your recommendations to be budget friendly/dependable/trustworthy, I just went ahead and called Vivint through your discount link. I read the fine print on the page that comes up through your link and it states that to get the free doorbell camera, there’s a minimum $549.99 purchase and if the equipment is purchased upfront, the service agreement is month to month. When I spoke to the representative I asked if their was any kind of contract and he told me their was no service contract through Vivint, just the monthly payment through Citizens Bank for the equipment. This was in fact, a lie, as now that I’m reading the fine print again, it states, “financing options require monthly services agreement coterminous with applicable financing agreement.” So anyways, the following day a technician came out and installed a motion sensor, three door sensors, two water sensors, the doorbell camera, and the main touchscreen panel. This package is written as, “Smart Home Bundle,” on our Schedule of Equipment and Services document for the price of $1899. The prices are not listed individually per item, and when I asked the technician if the doorbell camera was free, because I used the code, he danced around the answer and said something like, “well the package is discounted.” I gave him the benefit of the doubt, and because I was in a panicked state of mind for our family’s safety, just went ahead and signed the paperwork. I also just want to mention that we did not receive the yard sign and window decals that were also listed as included in the package. Maybe that’s minor, but I would have at least liked a yard sign.
Two days later, I was at Costco and saw a Ring Home Security System for $239.99 and immediately started looking into it. It includes SIX entry sensors and monitoring services are only $10/mo with no contracts. I instantly regretted signing up with Vivint. Usually, I am a fanatic researcher and this incident was one of the very few times where I just went with something without doing extensive research. I did that because, like I said, I trust your recommendations. Thankfully, because I caught this only two days after signing the agreement, I was able to write a notice of cancellation under the 3-day right of rescission law. I am still waiting to hear back from Vivint, as I emailed them on Friday (and also sent a paper copy by certified mail), but I am praying this will be a simple process without any hassle. I’ve been reading a lot of reviews about Vivint since Friday and have found that they are a very deceptive company when it comes to their contracts, which I have experienced myself. I just wanted to reach out to you and let you know my experience and that I am disappointed that you recommend this company, especially since your audience is generally people who are trying to get out of debt and become financially stable. I have since done more research on home security systems and at this point in time plan to go with SimpliSafe. They also have a kit available at Costco. We will be able to have a whole lot more protection (more entry sensors, glass break sensor, etc) for a fraction of the cost of Vivint!
First of all, I’m so sorry that something happened that compromised your feeling of safety in the first place! I wish none of us had to deal with this! And I’m proud of you for taking action and doing what you feel is best to protect your family! Second, I’m so sorry about your experience with Vivint! As with any nation-wide company, experiences can vary depending upon the employees you encounter. So all I can do is speak from my own experience. We bought our Vivint system with our own money, after doing our own research. Based on high recommendations from people we trust, and after doing a lot of exhaustive research, we went with Vivint and have had excellent experience with them. On the other hand, we were using Nest for a time prior to that, and had horrible experience. So I think what it comes down to is finding what fits best for your family! I’m so happy for you that you found what fits for you! In terms of Vivint and the fine print, that is definitely at the fault of your sales representative. For us, they were very clear about the fine print and we never felt like they were trying to hide anything from us. Our representative was extremely knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our fine print questions. But again, I definitely know that not all employees are created equal so I’m so sorry you had a poor experience!
One of our employees had a Vivint system, then moved and got Ring. I asked her about it and she said “it’s extremely hard to compare the two. They are just very different. It’s like trying to compare a Jaguar and a Kia.” She said that she misses the robust monitoring of Vivint, and was ultimately very satisfied with her experience with Vivint. So again, I think this proves the point that you are doing everything right! You are doing your research and moving forward with what you feel is best for your family! And it very well might not be with Vivint. I agree that you should definitely take the actions necessary to make sure that you are getting everything promised to you in your package, and that your sales representative is being honest about the fine print. And that’s with any company, not just Vivint! Best of luck, and again, I’m sorry for your poor experience! No one deserves that!
Hey! Just wanted to jump in with my experience with Vivint and Ring. I’ve had both. Right now I have Ring and I can tell you it’s NOTHING compared to my experience with Vivint 8+ years ago. Ring frequently goes offline and won’t alert me. My doorbell camera was out of batteries for almost a week before I noticed because it wouldn’t ring when the UPS guy tried.
I know there’s a HUGE cost difference, but Vivint really does supply a better use experience. The alarm on Ring doesn’t even wake me up. It went off one morning early when my kids opened the door to go outside and I slept right through it. Vivint would wake up the entire neighborhood. I understand it’s cheaper, but in this case, you really do get what you pay for. When this recession is over, we’re going to buckle down and go back to Vivint since Ring isn’t working out for us the best.
I became a Vivint customer based on Jordan’s recommendation. I understand that service and service reps vary by state, but we just had a mediocre experience. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read all of the contracts. My husband and I are new homeowners and this is our first security system. Our service rep never went over all of the small details regarding the equipment. He mainly focused on the affordable monthly fee for monitoring. The first time I saw the complete service and equipment contract was when the technician arrived to our home. Our Smart Home Bundle, the package the sales rep defined as a “starter package”, is a whopping $2,504.68. It is nearly quadruple the price of Vivint’s competitors. They wanted us to pay for the equipment up front or finance it, in addition to the monthly monitoring fee. I was also eager to get my home secure and hastily signed the paperwork not realizing in very fine print that customers have just 3 days to cancel. I missed the cancellation window by just 1 day, but I blame that on myself for not taking the time to pause the installation and read through the extensive contracts on site. I say all this to say– research all the companies, read all the contracts as this process has been slightly deceptive, and don’t miss the 3-day cancellation window. In fact, ask for the contract prior to installation if you can so you are equipped with all the information you need to know. Finally, the code for the free doorbell camera was not on our contact. I had to call customer service after installation to get this credited back to our account. So, make sure you don’t end up paying for it!
So sorry to hear all of this! The service rep DEFINITELY makes a difference. Just like with anything, if you get one who doesn’t really care, then you’re much less likely to have a good experience. It has been great for us, but you definitely have to do what works best for you and your family! Thanks for sharing, hopefully others can learn from your unfortunate experience.