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The gates will not keep out a determined bad actor. We all know that. What the gates do accomplish is to keep out the nuisances, like Jehovah's, kids selling band/sport team candy, folks wanting to trim you trees or inspect your roof, etc. And since most property crimes are based on opportunity, the gates are enough of a deterrent to send most petty thieves to a different neighborhood.
The one I lived in back in AZ had a 6' wall around the perimeter and 1 attended gate and 1 unattended. The one I'm in now has a real nice hedge around most of it, 2 unattended gates. Cameras are installed at both gates in both communities.
Pro tip: If you don't like 'em, don't buy your house here.
Last edited by Buckeye77; 02-03-2023 at 07:40 PM..
I haven’t lived in a gated community, but I imagine it’s a hassle, and I seriously doubt that it would keep a dedicated bad guy from finding a way in.
My DILs grandparents live in a concrete walled casa in Puerto Rico, with a tall gate. A robber laid in wait until her grandfather opened the gate to get the mail, came into the house, and robbed them at knifepoint.
The responses here have revolved around the security aspect of gated communities so I'll start with that. I have something else to add, too, but more of that in a minute.
I've had one experience with a gated community. One of the community's disgruntled recently-fired employees came in via the secondary gate - the one next to the man-guarded gate for those with stickers - as he usually did. He still had the sticker on his car so the guard, who was busy with someone at his gate, didn't pay attention to him. The ex-employee proceeded to come to certain targeted residences (including mine) and burglarize us. He was never caught but was believed to be part of a ring of thieves who were fencing valuable items. Gates are not a panacea, as other posters have also stated.
The other issue, which may or may not be universal, is that in my region gated communities are responsible for their own road maintenance with all that entails, including road surfaces, potholes, etc. The city and county maintain all roadways outside the gated communities but not within. That definitely affects the cost of the monthly HOA fees. I'm not in a gated community at present and I'm fine with that.
The responses here have revolved around the security aspect of gated communities so I'll start with that. I have something else to add, too, but more of that in a minute.
I've had one experience with a gated community. One of the community's disgruntled recently-fired employees came in via the secondary gate - the one next to the man-guarded gate for those with stickers - as he usually did. He still had the sticker on his car so the guard, who was busy with someone at his gate, didn't pay attention to him. The ex-employee proceeded to come to certain targeted residences (including mine) and burglarize us. He was never caught but was believed to be part of a ring of thieves who were fencing valuable items. Gates are not a panacea, as other posters have also stated.
Not a panacea, just one among other deterrents.
Quote:
The other issue, which may or may not be universal, is that in my region gated communities are responsible for their own road maintenance with all that entails, including road surfaces, potholes, etc. The city and county maintain all roadways outside the gated communities but not within. That definitely affects the cost of the monthly HOA fees. I'm not in a gated community at present and I'm fine with that.
That doesn't have so much to do with the GATE, as the PRIVATE road. Lots of neighborhoods without gates have private roads and are therefore responsible for maintenance. Our road is not gated (yet) but is private, and we pay road dues to maintain it.
Gated implies HOA which is a hard and fast no for me.
Good to know! Having lived in over a dozen different communities in the past, the best thing about an HOA is that they keep out the riffraff, at least mostly. No run down houses or houses painted purple and gold, no unmowed yards, no cars/trucks all over the front laws (some up on blocks), no loud noises all hours of the day and night, etc. Those who think they are entitled to live like trash are welcome to it, just don't do it anywhere near us civilized people.
Most people like gated communities because they think the gates will prevent "bad guys" from roaming their neighborhood. In truth, I have appraised hundreds of homes in gated communities and I have NEVER failed to breeze through the gate behind a resident, maid or delivery driver. When I knock on their door, they always seem surprised that I got through the gate. The only time a gate works is when there's a full time guard on duty.
That^^^. We lived in a guard gated community for about 12 years and they did a very solid job of controlling the visitors EXCEPT for UPS and FedEx. But I was okay with that. I often visit people in gated communities with passcodes and typically just follow someone into the gate. These kinds of gates may help deter some crime, but I don’t believe they do a significant job. I think the best solution is to put Crimsafe security screens on the house.
I have no idea how a gate would prevent burglaries. You would need a lot more than gates and fences to keep thieves out of your house. Now, if you can secure your house as done in some military facilities, maybe the occasional burglar won't break into it.
If your house is about a mile and a half inside the manned front gate as mine is, and there's no other roads/trails into the community other than the front gate, then you've pretty much eliminated any walk-in burglars.
Occasionally, a resident here will complain of a burglary of some minor item, but usually it's a matter of the resident forgetting where they put something and just thinking it was stolen. They usually find it a few hours later.
Of course, there are service people (grass cutters, plumbers, AC technicians, etc) in the community nearly every day, but few people who actually work for a living are much danger for stealing, IMO.
This gated community is far safer than living on a street in a public community where anyone could simply walk up or drive up to your house. It just seems that when the visitors or workers are checked in via a driver's license and video camera and a record is kept of whose house they're visiting, they tend to be more honest than the average Joe who can just walk or drive up to your front door without having to identify himself to anyone.
If your house is about a mile and a half inside the manned front gate as mine is, and there's no other roads/trails into the community other than the front gate, then you've pretty much eliminated any walk-in burglars.
Occasionally, a resident here will complain of a burglary of some minor item, but usually it's a matter of the resident forgetting where they put something and just thinking it was stolen. They usually find it a few hours later.
Of course, there are service people (grass cutters, plumbers, AC technicians, etc) in the community nearly every day, but few people who actually work for a living are much danger for stealing, IMO.
This gated community is far safer than living on a street in a public community where anyone could simply walk up or drive up to your house. It just seems that when the visitors or workers are checked in via a driver's license and video camera and a record is kept of whose house they're visiting, they tend to be more honest than the average Joe who can just walk or drive up to your front door without having to identify himself to anyone.
Where I live at lots of residents have several acres of land around their homes, and roads leading to their homes. But a gate won't stop burglars, even if you have a "private property" sign on it. Burglars don't have to drive to your house each time, and you don't have a breach-free fence around the entire property. The whole thing amounts to this: you feel secure where you live at, and that works for you. I haven't seen gated communities in Alaska, but I remember seen then in NYC and CA. Gated community seem like some kind of prison to me
i want a 1/4 to 1/2 acre with a 12 foot wall all the way around, no gates or entrace, just let amazon throw foot over the wall once a week, have my own little court yard
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