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Dealer Business Model Guide

In-House vs. Funded

Understanding the two revenue models — and when to use each one.

In-House Model

You own the customer. You keep the recurring.

Best for commercial

Pros

  • Keep monthly recurring revenue (~$20+/mo net after pass-through & admin fees)
  • Build a book of business with long-term value
  • Charge customers more upfront (no contract = premium pricing)
  • You control billing — annual invoices, auto-pay, or monthly

Watch Out

  • You carry service and billing responsibility indefinitely
  • Some customers won't pay upfront (you'll lose some deals)
  • Requires more working capital to grow

Funded / Brinks Model

Brinks buys the account. You get a lump sum.

Best for residential

Pros

  • Customer pays little to nothing upfront — easier to close
  • You receive a lump-sum funding payout up front (~$500–$1,400+)
  • After 1 year: zero liability — Brinks handles service, billing, and risk
  • Higher credit score = higher funding multiple
  • Great for customers who can't or won't pay upfront

Watch Out

  • No monthly recurring revenue — one and done
  • Commercial funding from Brinks is poor — use in-house or Rapid for commercial
  • You're selling the customer to Brinks, not building your own book

Deal Breakdowns

Residential In-House Example

Equipment cost (panel, radio, doorbell, 3 contacts, 1 motion)~$556
Install cost (technician)~$250
Total cost~$806
Upfront charge to customer$1,500
Monthly monitoring charge$39.99–$44.99
Pass-through cost (monitoring + AlarmNet)~$14/mo
Admin fee~$12.50/mo
Net monthly profit~$20/mo
Upfront profit~$670

Residential Funded Example (680 credit score)

Upfront charge to customer$100
Monthly monitoring charge$59.99
Estimated initial funding from Brinks~$1,348
Equipment cost~$556
Install cost~$250
Pass-through cost~$13/mo (Brinks covers)
Upfront profit (funding minus costs)~$500–$650
Recurring revenue$0 — sold to Brinks
Liability after year 1None

Monitoring Partners

Rapid ResponseCommercial accounts

Default monitoring for all commercial (Arrow, warehouse, etc.). You bill the customer directly and Skyline bills you the pass-through cost.

Brinks HomeResidential funded accounts

Best funding multiples for residential. After 1 year, Brinks takes full ownership. You can also sell your in-house Brinks book to Brinks at a multiple if you ever exit.

Equipment Freedom

  • You are NOT locked into one equipment brand.
  • Approved brands include: Resideo/Honeywell, Qolsys, JCI, 2GIG, and others.
  • You can take over existing systems on different equipment.
  • Skyline will provide a list of Brinks-approved equipment.
  • You buy your own equipment — Skyline is your back office, not your supplier.

FAQs