Engineering implies working within constraints. Most people in this realm only have to deal with the spouse acceptance factor as a limiter.
Went from openhab -> homeassistant -> Node-RED. Then sprinkle in MySensors, Frigate, and Double-Take, but not on just the entrance, go for the perimeter then defense in depth.
https://www.mysensors.org/
https://frigate.video/
https://github.com/jakowenko/double-take