If you read our smart home cost breakdown and thought that's way more than I want to spend — you're in good company. That post covers a full, premium smart home build. It's accurate for what it is. But it's not where most people start, and it certainly doesn't have to be where you start.
There's another end of the scale. A way to get Home Assistant professionally installed in your home, understand what it can do, and start building — without spending thousands before you've seen anything working. This post is about that path.
What This Setup Actually Is
This engagement is simple: a Home Assistant Green hub, connected to your existing home network, set up and configured by PashaK, with a walkthrough of the app and what's possible.
That's it. No smart devices. No custom code. No advanced integrations at this stage. Just the platform — running reliably in your home, ready to grow with you.
Why no devices? Because the goal of a starter setup isn't to automate your entire house on day one. It's to get the foundation in place, understand what Home Assistant is actually capable of, and make informed decisions about what to add next. That conversation is a lot easier when the hub is already running and you can see things for yourself.
And there's a good chance you already have devices in your home that Home Assistant can connect to — you just don't know it yet. Smart TVs, media players, existing smart bulbs, a Chromecast on your TV — many of these are discoverable as soon as HA is on your network. Part of the onsite visit is finding out what's already there.
What Is Home Assistant Green?
Home Assistant Green is a small, purpose-built computer designed specifically to run Home Assistant. It's made by Nabu Casa — the same team behind Home Assistant itself — so it's built for exactly this job.
Physically, it's compact and quiet. Plug it into power and Ethernet, tuck it away in a cupboard or next to your router, and you'll forget it's there. Unlike a Raspberry Pi, it has no SD card to corrupt over time. Unlike a full mini PC, it's not running a general-purpose operating system with a fan and a power draw to match. It's purpose-built, low-maintenance, and reliable.
One honest note: the Green isn't designed for heavy workloads. If you later want to run local AI models for camera detection, or process multiple live video streams, you'd need to upgrade to a more capable machine. But for a starter setup — integrations, automations, notifications, and day-to-day smart home use — it handles everything you'll need.
What You Can Actually Do Without Adding Any Hardware
This is the part that surprises most people. Home Assistant isn't just about controlling lights and smart plugs. A significant chunk of its value comes from awareness, notification, and coordination — none of which require additional hardware.
Here's what's possible from day one, with nothing more than the hub and the Home Assistant mobile app on your phone:
- Presence detection. HA knows when you (and other household members) leave or arrive home — or enter or exit any geographic zone you define. No sensors. Just the app on your phone.
- Bin day reminders. Home Assistant can track your council's bin collection schedule and notify you the evening before — including which bin is correct that week.
- Calendar-based automations. Connect your Google or Apple Calendar and HA can act on what's in it. Whose turn is it to empty the dishwasher? Is there a school pickup today? Reminders, alerts, and automations tied to real events in your calendar.
- Weather-aware behaviour. No weather station required — HA reads your local forecast and can act on it. Notify you to bring the washing in. Adjust reminders based on the conditions outside.
- Device discovery. Once HA is on your network, it scans for compatible devices. Chromecasts, Sonos speakers, smart TVs, Philips Hue bridges, some robot vacuums — you might already have things HA can work with. The onsite visit often turns up a few surprises.
Hardware unlocks physical control — but it's never required just to get value from the platform.
A typical first week. One of our clients had their hub installed with no smart devices at all. Within a few days, they had bin reminders running, a notification when anyone arrived or left home, and discovered their Sonos system was already visible in Home Assistant. They added a smart switch two weeks later. But the hub was useful from day one — not because of hardware, but because of what the platform could already see and do.
What the $1,000–$1,500 Covers
Here's where the budget goes:
Home Assistant Green (Hardware)
Under $250 AUD
The dedicated hub that runs your smart home locally. Supplied by PashaK.
Setup, Configuration & Training
$750–1,000 AUD
Onsite visit, network connection, initial configuration, app walkthrough, and a follow-up check-in.
Total Engagement
$1,000–$1,500 AUD
Typical range. Exact cost depends on travel distance and time on site. Free 15-minute call before any commitment.
What affects the final number? Primarily travel distance — we're based in Melbourne's west and north-west, so clients further afield carry a small travel component. The complexity of your existing network and the time needed on site also play a part. We'll give you a firm quote after the initial call.
No smart devices are included in this engagement. If you decide you want to add devices after the hub is running — and most people do — that becomes a separate conversation, at a pace that suits you.
Starting Small vs. Going Bigger
A starter setup makes sense if you're curious about Home Assistant but aren't sure where you'd take it yet. If you've recently moved in. If you want to understand the platform before committing to devices. Or if budget is a factor and you'd rather start conservatively and expand.
On the other hand, if you already know you want security cameras with AI detection, or a whole-home automation system, or a home server running alongside everything else — it may be worth having a bigger conversation from the start. Going back and upgrading the hub later is possible, but doing it right from day one is cleaner.
The starter setup isn't a compromise. It's a deliberate starting point. Some clients stay at this level for a year before adding hardware. Some never add anything and find it meets their needs entirely. The platform grows with you at whatever pace makes sense.
If you want to see what the bigger build looks like, take a look at our Smart Home Cost Breakdown — that covers a full premium setup including cameras, AI detection, and a custom mini PC build.
Ready to Take the First Step?
A 15-minute phone call is all it takes to figure out whether this is the right fit for your home. We'll talk through what you're hoping to achieve, what's already in your home, and whether a starter setup makes sense or whether a bigger conversation is worth having first.
No obligation. No hard sell. Just a practical conversation. Get in touch and we'll take it from there.
Hardware Used
- Home Assistant Green — A small, purpose-built computer that runs Home Assistant locally in your home. Made by Nabu Casa, the team behind Home Assistant.
- Your existing home router — Home Assistant Green connects via Ethernet to your existing broadband setup. No new networking required.