[4 Security Concerns] for Multifamily Communities

[Demetrius Brown]

Problems like trespassing, conflict, and unwelcome visitors are common to any multifamily unit. And the trouble spots where these occur generally remain consistent across locations.

An industry expert on how you can better protect your properties.

You’d expect the problems low-income property managers face to be much different than those of someone managing luxury developments. And you’d be right—to an extent. But there are more similarities than you’d expect.

The challenge is how to monitor these multiple, dispersed locations simultaneously, without the cost of hiring more staff. Kastle’s Remote Video Guarding enables this by employing AI-enabled video surveillance to trigger live response from a remote Video Operations Center, proactively supporting onsite staff as needed to ward off threats with faster response than guards at less expense.

You might be surprised where trouble pops up. Here’s a quick look at four areas that frequently present security issues in multifamily units, such as apartment and condo complexes:

PARKING LOTS/GARAGES

Be it a luxury model or basic transportation, motor vehicles are essential to many residents’ lives. They’re also magnets for thieves and vandals. Remote Video Guarding strengthens parking security by expanding the real-time monitoring perimeter with dispersed cameras that can instantly alert remote operators and on-site staff to potential issues before incidents occur.

Remote monitors can verbally confront potential bad actors using on-location audio or notify law enforcement with video-verified detection which generates response as much as five times faster than an unverified alarm.

COMMON SPACES

Shared amenities like lounges, rooftops and pools inevitably draw occupants after hours. Typically, not nefarious, it’s still a behavior that operators must prevent to reduce liability or misuse.

Kastle’s AI video surveillance immediately alerts our live monitors to confront violators if such infractions occur. This includes loitering in locations like stairwells, which can be a risk when not heavily trafficked.

BIKE STORAGE

Bicycles are as alluring to thieves as autos and easier to carry, so it’s critical to monitor resident bike lockers and racks to prevent theft. Kastle’s Remote Video Guarding generates early alerts to suspicious activity notifying operators when people loiter near the bicycle storage areas.

Live monitoring is effective in this instance to gauge context such as someone spending too much time in the area or returning several times, which could be an early indication of threat.

PETS

Frequently, resident pet owners are contractually obligated to clean up Fido’s waste—not doing so is not only a discourtesy, a maintenance headache, and a potential health hazard, but it’s also a lease violation. Video monitoring can proactively prevent these problems with a brief verbal warning to the owner. For more serious infractions, such as a pet attacking another person on the property, video can be used forensically to determine the cause.

These locations represent a large area to cover at once. A good video surveillance system supplements human guards to be more impactful—but cost-effectively. Kastle’s AI video cameras detect and sift through over 200 million videos per month to identify threats—ultimately making the jobs of property and building managers, as well as guard staff, much easier.

All the best,

Demetrius L. Brown