With stock trading, you can monitor your results every minute ... even every second ... with great accuracy and make adjustments.

Has anyone had experiences good or bad with different monitoring services?

Point Central has some solid home monitoring packages you should check out.

I don't need the system to do anything else, but I do want to be able to monitor it from my phone, 4.5 hours away.

We're only in our third week of using the VA/Dialer setup, so I'll have to continue to monitor the data.

I would probably do an old school camera with a traditional monitor because as tenants leave you have to ensure they give you or reset the password if you have an internet based system.

From what I understand, you can use it without WiFi and just have it function as an audible alarm (no alert), or have it function as an audible alarm with monitoring/alert via a cellular connection. 

We had the same audit & after the building inspector, our commercial architect, fire chief etc finished I had to design, install a fire sprinkler system, complete with 24/7 first responder monitoring . 

Personally, I use the Starbucks monitor for towns with predominantly traditional single-family house neighborhoods and driving as the main mode of transportation.

Further, the borrower is protected under The Homeowners Protection Act of 1998 (HPA or PMI Cancellation Act) which since the Dobb-Frank Bill was fairly unmonitored but since the bill's passing a new agency now monitors the proper disclosure of MI to borrowers.