Any Inexpensive Surveillance Video Options for Rental Property?

[Kurt Stein]

Hi BP, I'm looking for a cheap video surveillance option to keep an eye on my rental property. This was a request of a tenant who had her vehicle stolen from the driveway, and something I want to do to ensure my tenants feel safe and secure. What have you all used in your experiences? Looking for a low cost option that can be used outdoors to watch the driveway and those coming in and out of the home. Thank you, Kurt

[Brandon McCombs]

Originally posted by @Kurt Stein:

Thank you all for the responses. Are there monthly costs associated with these systems? Where is the data stored? What if the tenants don't have wifi?

 The available options for the various aspects of a security system are too numerous to mention. You'll have to do research to see what options a particular system has available. I'm currently working on a renovation after a fire and will be installing at least 14 cameras in and around my building as part of the rebuild.

I'm going with a DVR system. I don't want cloud-based storage, which costs extra. I don't like not having control of my data, not to mention cloud-based storage is typically so limited that it would roll off most likely before I knew I needed it. I'm getting color night-vision. All cameras will be IP-based using PoE (power over ethernet) so I'm having cat5 cable ran to where all the cameras will be located. The data will be sent directly to the DVR where the software is hosted. Some systems allow network-based storage to be connected or they may provide only software and you buy the hardware. I prefer the DVR-based solutions. 

You shouldn't make this be dependent in any way on the tenant. For my system, I'm having a coax drop installed with TimeWarner so the internet access to view the feeds is available with a smartphone app. The power will be on the landloard breaker panel, etc. My property is a multi-tenant apt building. For a single family rental, you won't have a choice of having some dependency on the tenant unless you end up paying for the required utilities to avoid issues with their not paying and then you lose footage/access as a result.

I recommend talking to a consultant in your area to discuss what you want. They can ask you questions and you tell them what you want. They will then find a system that meets your requirements. You can then negotiate from there to add/remove features. Cameras can be mixed and matched to some degree with the recording units. And there are many different types of cameras (quality of the footage, quality of construction, features, etc.). I'm aiming for cameras that are about $200-300 each because I don't want to take any chances of having issues when an incident does occur. My system will probably end up costing about $4k but I don't have the final estimate yet. I believe my contractor is going to be choosing Lorex brand, which are about mid-level cost-wise from what he says. He also mentioned Vivotek. Those may or may not be too high-grade for what you are desiring. But that's what you have to figure out: what do you want? Then go from there. There are just about as many options as there are when buying a vehicle. Do you want a truck, car, SUV? Then you decide from there with more specific details.