Service area
Smart Home Installation in East Hampton and Sag Harbor
Kotoh Home installs private AI home assistants and smart home systems in East Hampton, Sag Harbor and out to Montauk, with care for older houses and a setup that keeps watch when you're not there.
Old houses, new technology
East Hampton was founded in 1648, and plenty of houses in and around the village are far older than modern wiring. Sag Harbor's whole business district is a national historic district: the Sag Harbor Village District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and expanded in 1994, and it includes 870 contributing buildings.
Houses like these deserve a light touch. Plaster walls, original trim and tight ceiling cavities make running new cable slow and visible, and some older wiring was never meant to carry a modern network. So we start from what the house allows:
- Wireless first. Locks, thermostats, leak sensors and contact sensors that run on batteries or replace an existing device, with no new wiring.
- Switch and fixture swaps. Smart dimmers and switches that fit the existing boxes, and lamp modules where no switch exists.
- A network that reaches every room. Thick walls and long, rambling floor plans are hard on Wi-Fi. We place access points where they cover the house without being seen, and give smart devices their own network, separate from your laptops and phones.
- Nothing on the façade without a plan. If you are in a historic district, check with the village before adding anything visible outside. We plan exterior cameras and equipment so they can stay discreet.
Built for a summer town
East Hampton's summer-colony history goes back to the railroad era, when visitors first boarded on Main Street and then built "cottages" that were often substantial estates. That pattern has never really changed. Today the village has about 1,500 year-round residents (1,517 in the 2020 census), restricts non-resident parking from May 1 to September 30, and empties out in the winter. Montauk, which stretches about 13 miles from Napeague to the lighthouse, follows the same rhythm.
For a house that is full in August and empty in February, the assistant does two jobs. In season, it runs the household: arrival routines when you come out on a Friday, family calendars, reminders about the landscaper and the pool service, and one place to ask "is everyone's door locked?" Out of season, it watches the house:
- Freeze alerts if the indoor temperature falls toward the danger zone. January on Long Island averages roughly 25°F to 45°F.
- Leak sensors with an optional automatic water shutoff.
- Power-outage and generator alerts.
- A weekly text summary, so silence means the house is fine rather than that nobody checked.
See second-home monitoring for the details, and closing up your Hamptons house for winter for the checklist we use.
Rentals and the people who help run the house
Many East End homes are rented for part of the summer or looked after by a caretaker. The assistant can issue door codes that work only during a guest's stay, reset the house between bookings, and give a house manager or cleaner access to the rooms and controls they need without access to everything else. Our guide on smart homes for house managers and caretakers explains how we set up those permissions.
Privacy you can explain to your family
The assistant's AI runs on a computer in your house that you own. Requests, routines and household details are processed there, not by a cloud AI service. Messages you send it travel through Apple's or Meta's encrypted networks, depending on the app, and connected accounts such as email and calendars stay with their providers. We go through exactly what connects to what at the walk-through.
Getting started
The walk-through is free. You get a fixed price before any work begins: Essentials at $4,995, Smart Home at $6,995 or Estate from $10,995, each including the dedicated AI computer. Optional care plans start at $149 a month. We cover East Hampton village, Sag Harbor, Amagansett, Springs and Montauk, and also work in Southampton and Bridgehampton and across the water on Shelter Island.
Common questions
Can you add smart home features to an old house without opening walls?
Usually, yes. Most modern locks, thermostats, sensors and lighting controls are wireless or replace an existing switch or fixture, so we can do a great deal without cutting into plaster. Where wiring is needed, we plan the least invasive route at the walk-through.
My house is in a historic district. Is that a problem?
Not for the inside of the house. For anything visible outside, such as cameras or exterior equipment, check with the village first, because historic districts may review exterior changes. We plan exterior placements with that in mind and can keep most equipment out of sight.
Can the assistant manage a summer rental?
Yes. It can create door codes that work only during a stay, reset the thermostat and lights between guests, and tell you if a door was left open or a leak sensor tripped.
Do you work in Montauk?
Yes. We cover the Town of East Hampton, including Montauk, Amagansett and Springs, along with the Village of Sag Harbor.
What does it cost?
Essentials is $4,995, Smart Home is $6,995 and Estate starts at $10,995, all including the dedicated AI computer you own. Care plans start at $149 a month.