Security System Ideas For Landlords (Commercial & Residential)
For some reason, commercial and residential property owners often view the challenge posed by burglars and invaders differently. In many case, commercial and residential properties represent significant elements in the owner’s portfolio so understanding the risks and the available tools to deter crime is an important part of ownership.
Property owners in commercial and income producing properties have responsibilities to the people who reside and work in their buildings. At the same time, homeowners want to protect their loved ones and their investment. All these property owners can benefit from realising the common traits that burglars possess. Thinking about what a perpetrator wants, how he will access the property and how he will exit with his stolen goods is a good place to start in preventing crime.
Things Burglars Need to Do
- Burglars need to gain entry quickly and quietly.
- Burglars need to move through the property quickly and steal items they can trade on the black market.
- Burglars need to pack objects and flee as soon as possible, usually through a preconceived exit strategy.
- Burglars need to observe observation outside and inside the property.
While these are obvious needs of the successful burglar, if the property owner designed a security system that discouraged any or all of these actions, Workers, tenants and family members would be safer.
Things Burglars Do Not Like
- There are things that burglars dislike. Adding these elements to your residential or commercial property’s security system definitely increases the property’s protection level.ïBurglars do not like noise. Noise warns passersby and police that something is awry.
- Burglars do not like to struggle with entry. The stronger the doors and locking mechanism, the greater the line of defence.
- Burglars do not like light. Placing perimeter lights and flooding the grounds surrounding the building with motion activated floodlights notifies neighbours and occupants when there is motion on the grounds.
- Burglars need to be able to flee in an obstructed exit while carrying stolen goods. If the exit options present obstacles, a quick exit is impossible.
What Burglars Like
- Burglars like dark, unlit properties.
- Burglars like doors that are easy to open.
- Burglars like high shrubs behind which they can hide.
- Burglars like unlocked doors. Burglars like spare keys left in obvious places
- Burglars like open windows.
- Burglars like unsecured outbuildings.
- Burglars like to have a clear exit path.
Property owners must insist upon certain disciplines from their tenants and family members. Spare keys should be controlled, never given to repair persons and doors and windows should be checked every day to make sure they are locked in off hours. If the hoe or commercial property owner does not have s security protocol, he is partially responsible for a potential burglary.
Remedies for Commercial and Residential Security
Adding light to the grounds, having an alarm system and motion detectors are important components of any property security system. Most security system providers will also advise the use of cameras to record activity.
To discourage abuse of spare or missing keys, new security systems with digital codes to open doors are an excellent line of defense. Many companies are using biometrics to admit employees to protected properties.
Whether you own an income property, a home or a commercial building, the best way to protect your property is to take security seriously. Consult with a security specialist and walk the property thoroughly. Ask the consultant to assess the current security and make recommendations about how it can be improved. Your insurance carrier will love you. You may even qualify for property insurance discounts by upgrading the security.
Every property should have a security system, even if it is a do-it-yourself brand. Security systems can be tailored to meet the needs of the enterprise of homeowner. One size does not fit all in the area of property security but motion detectors, a functional intercom and fire and burglar alarms belong in every residential and commercial property.
In your property assessment, do not forget to check the grounds around the structure. If possible, consider installing an iron fence around the property. This can reduce the burglars ability to escape unnoticed and if it is high enough can make entry onto the grounds difficult. In some residential areas, you may need to check with the code as to acceptable height but a perimeter fence gives commercial and residential properties one more layer of defence. Of course, you will want to flood the area inside the fence with lights.
Most importantly, workers in commercial buildings, tenants in income properties and family members at home must learn to take security seriously. Today, one cannot be too careful. When tenants change, change the locks. When a commercial tenant has turnover, change the combination or locks. Perform regular security check on all your properties and you will have a more profitable and enjoyable ownership experience.