High rises, low rises, town homes and other residential complexes house a multitude of families—often with a higher turnover rate than homeowners. As such, visitors are more common and neighbors may not know one another. This ebb and flow of people in and out of buildings can heighten residents’ fears of vandalism, break-ins and crime.
Residents expect property managers to provide a level of security, and IP video surveillance solutions help meet this need. Here’s everything you need to know about video surveillance equipment, setup and security benefits for residential buildings.
Benefits of a Video Surveillance Infrastructure
Technology advancements have made IP video solutions more robust and affordable, enabling property managers to provide tenants with increased security.
An IP system’s main differentiator over closed circuit television (CCTV) is its ability to send and receive data across networks. This means, recorded video can be accessed via the Internet, from any approved location or device.
For property managers with multiple building locations, IP video can be deployed over multiple sites for one company for simpler administration. This lets you access all video feeds them from one centralized location—rather than at each individual building.
CCTV systems, on the other hand, can only transmit information to one specified monitoring location since video is housed on-premise.
Further, IP video surveillance benefits include:
- Reduced liability.
- The ability to identify and catch thieves and vandals.
- Minimized security threat due to deterrence.
- Assistance with visitor management efforts.
- The option to utilize decentralized or centralized monitoring.
- Remote accessibility—view video feed from anywhere at anytime.
- Secure data transfer via encrypted transmissions.
- Peace of mind.
Alerts can also be configured to notify you in real-time if suspicious activities have occurred. This creates a more cohesive approach to monitoring and provides added convenience for property managers.
Video surveillance solutions have become an integral part of building security. When partnering with the right vendor, these benefits can be realized with limited effort.
Video Technology Selection
For residential complexes, we recommend high-definition cameras and network video recorders. High definition presents added features over standard IP, including:
- Video analytics.
- Central station monitoring.
- Virtual pan, tilt and zoom during event playback.
The latter allows you to zoom in on an image up to 18x without losing resolution. This is a very useful function when trying to identify a situation.
If placing cameras on light poles, remote buildings or in other areas in which trenching would normally be required, consider deploying a wireless mesh network for the same security benefits at a much lower cost.
Setup and Installation
Best vendors will walk through your properties with you to identify prime locations to install indoor and outdoor security cameras. Inside the complex, this may include:
- All entrances and exits.
- The lobby.
- Elevators.
- Mail area.
- Common areas.
- Hallways.
- Service areas.
- Recreation areas.
For outdoor security equipment, you’ll want to survey the property to see where suspicious activity may take place. To abide by best practices, install cameras:
- On each exterior perimeter.
- Entrances and exits.
- Courtyards and common area.
- Parking lots and garages.
- Walkways.
Following installation, have your vendor train you on local and remote system usage—including how to log in and manage your security from your smartphone, tablet and PC.
Whether first installing video surveillance for properties or making the switch to IP, the process can be pain free when partnered with the right vendor. Learn more about the features and benefits of an IP video surveillance system; contact us today.
What steps have you taken to secure your properties? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Image Source: Elvert Barnes via Flickr
