Is the home security company's primary focus residential home security? (Your home is not a business, so while one company may be great at providing security for businesses, you want someone that provides security to residential neighborhoods.)

Has the home security company been awarded a Consumers Digest Best Buy, or other similar awards for their standard security systems? (Awards like these are good indicators of a great company, and if nothing else they will tell you that others have been happy with the service.)

Does the home security company operate its own home security monitoring center with emergency back-up facilities? (Having 24 hour monitoring will be useless if they do not have backup facilities incase of a power outage, etc. so check into this before you shell out money for this service.)

Is the home security company a full service provider (install, service and monitor the security system)? (You may not want to install your system yourself.)

Are the home security company's employees licensed, drug tested and background checked? (You want to make sure the people representing the company are of a high caliber.)

Do the home security system installation technicians undergo weekly training? (You want the people monitoring your system to be up to date.)

Do the home security system installation technicians arrive in clearly marked company trucks and show ID? (You want to know who you are dealing with.)

Does the home security consultant give a live demo with a working model of the security system? (You need to see what they are providing you, and how well it works.)

Is the keypad easy to use, with simple instructions? (If you can't figure out how to use your system it won't do you any good.)

Can the home security alarm system alert you when it detects dangerous levels of carbon monoxide? (You want to be protected against everything, not just human intruders.)

Does the keypad have one-button "Motion Off" and "Instant" arming? (Ease is important.)

Does the home security company offer monitored smoke/heat or carbon monoxide detectors? (It is worth repeating, there are more than just human intruders to protect yourself against.)

Does the home security company use only dual technology motion detectors? (If this is important to you, you need to make sure they can provide them.)

Does the home security company have a move policy? (If you move you do not want to have look for a new company and pay new set up fees, find out what the move policy is even if you do not intend to move.)

Does the home security company offer 24-hour emergency repair service, if necessary; giving you added peace of mind? (If your system breaks and it takes a week to get it fixed, what is the point of even having one?)

As you can see, these questions will be very useful to you in getting the best company and service available, so take the time to ask them.