A complete smart entry system does more than lock and unlock a door — it recognizes who is arriving, adjusts lighting, disarms the alarm, records video, and sends notifications. All of this is possible without any cloud accounts, subscription fees, or manufacturer apps. Here is how to build it with Home Assistant.
Components of a Cloud-Free Smart Entry System
- Smart lock: Z-Wave deadbolt (Schlage BE469ZP or Yale Assure Lock 2)
- Door camera: PoE IP camera running through Frigate NVR
- Video doorbell (optional): Reolink Video Doorbell PoE (RTSP-compatible, works with Frigate)
- Motion sensor: Zigbee or Z-Wave sensor for the entry area
- Smart lighting: Zigbee bulbs or switches at the entry
- Hub: Home Assistant on a mini PC or Raspberry Pi 4
The Video Doorbell Problem
Most video doorbells (Ring, Nest Hello, Eufy) are cloud-dependent. The best local alternative is the Reolink Video Doorbell PoE (~$70). It supports RTSP streaming, integrates with Frigate for local person detection, and triggers notifications in Home Assistant when someone presses the button — no Reolink cloud account required for local functionality.
Building the Entry Automations
Automation 1: Someone Rings the Doorbell
- Trigger: Reolink doorbell button pressed (binary sensor in HA)
- Action 1: Send push notification to all household phones with a camera snapshot from Frigate
- Action 2: Announce on home speakers “Someone is at the front door”
- Action 3: Flash the entry light twice
Automation 2: Person Detected at Front Door (No Doorbell Press)
- Trigger: Frigate person detection on doorbell camera
- Condition: Home is in Away mode OR time is after 10pm
- Action: Send push notification with camera clip
Automation 3: Welcome Home (Code Used)
- Trigger: Z-Wave lock event — code slot 1 used (your primary code)
- Action 1: Disarm alarm
- Action 2: Turn on entry and hallway lights at 80%
- Action 3: Announce “Welcome home” on entry speaker
- Action 4: Start your arrival scene (thermostat, music, etc.)
Automation 4: Auto-Lock and Secure
- Trigger: Lock has been unlocked for 5 minutes
- Condition: Door is closed (door sensor)
- Action: Lock the deadbolt
Total Cost
- Schlage BE469ZP Z-Wave lock: $150
- Reolink Video Doorbell PoE: $70
- Zigbee motion sensor: $12
- Zigbee entry light switch: $20
- Total: ~$252 one-time (assuming Home Assistant hub already exists)
Ring equivalent with subscription: $200 doorbell + $100 lock + $100/year subscription = $400 year 1, $500 year 2, and growing.
What happens when the power or batteries die
A cloud entry system fails open or closed depending on the vendor’s design decisions. A local one, you design the failure behavior yourself — so it’s worth doing deliberately:
- Lock battery dies: Z-Wave locks warn Home Assistant at ~20% battery, giving weeks of notice before it actually stops responding. Every lock in this guide also has a physical key override or an emergency 9V terminal on the outside keypad — never rely on the electronics alone as your only way in.
- Home Assistant / hub loses power: This is the important one. Z-Wave locks store their access codes on the lock itself, not in Home Assistant. If your hub goes down, the lock keeps working with whatever codes were already programmed — you just lose new automations (welcome scenes, notifications) until it’s back. This is why local beats cloud here: a cloud lock with a dead internet connection can lock you out entirely.
- Full power outage: Put your Z-Wave coordinator and Home Assistant host on a small UPS (even a $40 one buys hours). The lock itself runs on its own batteries regardless, so the door still operates — the UPS is about keeping cameras and automations alive, not the lock.
Guest and short-term access, done properly
If you rent the place out, host guests, or just want a cleaner way to handle a dog-walker or cleaner, don’t share your main code. Z-Wave locks support multiple independent codes (30–250 depending on the model), and Home Assistant can manage them on a schedule:
- Create a dedicated code per guest via the Lock Code Manager integration, rather than reusing one code for everyone — that way you know exactly who came and when from the lock event log.
- Automate code expiry: an automation that removes a guest’s code automatically at checkout time means you never have to remember to do it, and an old renter never has standing access.
- Get a notification on every code use, not just failures — it turns the lock into a lightweight access log without any third-party service reading it.
This is the genuine advantage of building the entry system yourself instead of buying a rental-management smart lock platform: the exact same hardware, with access logic that answers to nobody but you.
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