Coldwell Banker declares 2016 as the year smart home technology becomes mainstream. The real estate experts project home owners and consumers will readily embrace smart home enhancements from security to appliances. So far, more than 45 percent of Americans either own smart home technology or plan to invest in it. In fact, Juniper Research reports that smart home revenues will soar to $71 billion by 2018.

But consumers don’t have to join the smart home revolution by rushing out and rewiring their home for new smart technology. To start, you can enter into the market slowly and focus on smartphone apps and plugins that can help manage your home. Here are five ways to utilize your smartphone to manage your home from the office, overseas or from your own bedroom.

Monitor Your Home

The 2015 State of the Smart Home Report by Icontrol Networks found for the second year in a row that consumers report wanting security as the top reason to purchase a smart home. Install a Lorex by FLIR security system with free remote security monitoring to find out what’s going on in your home in real time. Watch a live view or playback footage, and get an easy-to-read list of motion triggered events complete with video snapshots.

Turn on Your Appliances

Ever wish you could turn on your oven on your way home from work? The GE kitchen app connects you to your oven so you can start preheating while you're still picking up ingredients for your meal. And if you get held up in the check-out line, you can adjust the temperature. And if you're looking to turn off and on small kitchen gadgets or electronics around your home, use the WeMo switch by Belkin to control heaters, fans, lamps and more right from its app.

Clean-Up

Don't get caught with unexpected guests and a dirty house. The Dyson 360 Eye robot can do the job for you and vacuum your floors by itself. It can also observe and interpret its surroundings and figure out how to effectively navigate a room. A digital readout can tell you how much your Dyson 360 Eye covered, and it knows where it's already cleaned instead of constantly doubling back. Set a cleaning schedule for your new cleaning robot or use its app to do a spontaneous clean before friends come over for a visit.

Unlock Your Door

Create your own virtual keys for guests, your cleaning help or trusted contractors and monitor who comes and go with August. The virtual lock can lock and unlock on your command, making it ideal for parents with kids coming home from school solo. August also eliminates the need to constantly be home when someone needs to drop something off or a friend decides to stop by before you get home.

Check for Leaks

Don't get caught with a skyrocketing water bill, or worse, damage from an unseen leak. The home sensing solution Wally can detect and alert you when there's a water leak and tell you exactly where it's coming from. The setup assistant can tell you where to use Wally, but generally recommends underneath sinks and near major pipes. Next, set-up the app and get instant SMS pushes and email alerts about real-time updates with your home.