Security cameras in a rental unit (tenant, renters, house, record)
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I just bought a single family 3/2 with garage home on a fairly private .92 acre, that I plan to rent out for the next 2 or 3 years in a mid sized northern AZ city. I will be an absentee landlord, or use a property manager. Still on the fence which way I go on that.
It has two rental units on either side, one of them is lower end for the area, and I suspect the owner isnt really particular about who she rents to. I am not keen on this, but the new house I bought was a decent buy for the area.
I am thinking about installing fixed security cameras on my new property on the exterior only to cover the approaches to the home doors and windows, as the home is somewhat secluded and I would like forensic evidence if anything happened there.
The cameras would be recorded remotely and accessible via the internet. I would give the tenants the ability to log in and see the views and access past recorded video via a controlled "guest" log in account. I also would be able to do this, and would control the remote access exclusively.
The property manager I am considering using was ambivalent to this idea, and I could not find any prohibitions to it with the city, regarding tenant privacy issues.
Has anybody else done this? Would it tend to creep out a prospective tenant, or would they like the idea of a CCTV based security system they could access from a smart phone, even while away from the home?
I talked myself into it, due to that particular local market and other factors.
But that is not relevent to the broader question I am asking about the CCTV system.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational
Not an awful idea... Look into game camera's as well.
As background, I am a technical security specialist, and networked HD CCTV is certianly one of my specialties. Game cameras do not have remote access abilities (AFAIK), which I desire. They may be an option for addressing valid privacy concerns though, but only if I was there myself to access the game cameras.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational
Nope. Now you've crossed a line.
Really? Would you not rent the place knowing I had remote access to exterior only areas?
I guess that is the question I would most likely want input on.I would want to be completely transparent up front with any potential renters on that fact also.
The key is what views would actually be recorded I think.
Really? Would (many) not rent the place knowing I had (control of the) remote access ...?
I guess that is the question I would most likely want input on.
That's what I'm suggesting. That you keeping the control rankles.
Provide the equipment and allow them to use it or not? Sure.
In the event of ... to have access to the pertinent hour or two of video? Sure.
Running it nonstop 24/7 with unhindered access? Nope.
If it's pitched as a benefit (the extra security), I could see some people being fine with it or even liking it.
A lot of people are going to view it as a controlling landlord thing to do and hate it. Even if you aren't controlling, they don't know that. And how passive are you going to be if you log in and see something related to the tenant? A big party? Uncut grass? Vehicle parts laying around? A Walmart pool killing a patch of grass? Are you really not ever going to bring up a single issue related to the tenant?
Are there any historical facts to support your concern, or are you just worried those other tenants might not be as good as you'd like and one day something might happen?
That's what I'm suggesting. That you keeping the control rankles.
Provide the equipment and allow them to use it or not? Sure.
In the event of ... to have access to the pertinent hour or two of video? Sure.
Running it nonstop 24/7 with unhindered access? Nope.
OK, fair enough.
Again, the point of this posting is to perhaps gauge a sample of folks that would really dislike it.
Last edited by snebarekim; 10-18-2019 at 12:03 PM..
If it's pitched as a benefit (the extra security), I could see some people being fine with it or even liking it.
I thought as much. I lived in a home that had a similiar set up by the owner for several years in a very high crime area in South Africa, and I actually liked the system myself.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LLinVA
A lot of people are going to view it as a controlling landlord thing to do and hate it. Even if you aren't controlling, they don't know that.
To clarify, what I meant by "control" was I would be the only one able to give others access to the log in, and would be able to know when the system had been accessed. The cameras would be fixed views only, no PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) type cameras.
But I count your input as a "No, do not like it".
Quote:
Originally Posted by LLinVA
And how passive are you going to be if you log in and see something related to the tenant? A big party? Uncut grass? Vehicle parts laying around? A Walmart pool killing a patch of grass? Are you really not ever going to bring up a single issue related to the tenant?
That goes back to the field of views being controlled. No wider views of the outdoor "private areas", but only close up views of potential entry points such as doors and windows (including garage door). And not pointed into windows of course. There would be at least two outward looking cameras facing a fence bordering the next door property, but that area is not landscaped to facilitate casual outdoor use by my potential tenants.
I am mindful of the privacy aspects of it all, hence my posting here. What I did not include in my OP is that there would be an internal monitor in the master bedroom that could be turned on at the renters discretion, giving them a view from inside of all the camera views. They would know what I could also potentially see. This would be pointed out at an initial showing.
Yes I could potentially know when the tenants came and went. Or what non tenant people actually comes and goes also.
I hope to screen tenants out that would likely be big partiers. But you raise a good question. How nosy would I be tempted to be? I want the system for forensic purposes in case there is a problem with other non tenant factors at this point.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LLinVA
Are there any historical facts to support your concern, or are you just worried those other tenants might not be as good as you'd like and one day something might happen?
I dont have anything specific, but the landlord of the place next door complained she had tenants that did certian types of property damage in the past, and they did not respect the boundaries of the property I purchased . She used to own both places, and she herself had lived in the house I bought for years. I did not buy it from her, but I bought it from the person she sold it to. The tenants she was complaining about are not the ones in that house now.
Looking at the condition of the property area next door, and it's current state is what gives me the idea to install the CCTV system. Of course I spoke to her ( a random chance encounter) after I bought the house.
I eventually plan to install an extended 8' privacy fence on that side when I myself occupy the home in a few years.
OP, We rented an Airbnb last summer. The owner/host had security cameras and also google home. I wasn’t delighted. It made me wonder if he also had hidden cameras in our bedroom and bathrooms. I take a long bath at night. I started bathing with a candle burning in a far corner. I changed my clothes in the walk in closet. We weren’t there all that long but it bothered me thinking he has cameras outside — maybe inside too.
If this were my rental unit, I would give the tenants the option of me having live cameras or not. I would make them sign a statement acknowledging there are exterior surveillance cameras, they have consented to the monitoring of the outside premises of the property; and in the content of the statement there would be language warranting there are no interior cameras.
You have the right to put any camera on your property that faces and records the outside. You can tell the tenants so if they are hesitant about it then you need to find others plus it's a good way to weed out any potential troublemakers who want to buy or deal drugs from home.
I just bought a single family 3/2 with garage home on a fairly private .92 acre, that I plan to rent out for the next 2 or 3 years in a mid sized northern AZ city. I will be an absentee landlord, or use a property manager
As a former landlord with local properties I can tell you that the odds favor you regretting that purchase.
Quote:
Originally Posted by snebarekim
Has anybody else done this? Would it tend to creep out a prospective tenant, or would they like the idea of a CCTV based security system they could access from a smart phone, even while away from the home?
I'm sure lots of people have done it. What difference does it make what strangers on the internet think?
The people to ask are your prospective tenants. They will either like the idea and rent from you or not like the idea and not rent from you.
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