Ensuring condo and apartment security is different from a home given the different design of a condo and varying amenities that you might have in place. While a house has multiple entrances through windows, doors and garage, a condo or apartment unit may only have the front door but other concerns like a locker, storage room, or garage where you store your car or bike.
Condos and apartments can achieve greater protection with an alarm system specifically tailored for your unit design. You can also reinforce your front door with a new lock and deadbolt since it’s usually the only point of entry for units not on the first floor. Sliding door and windows can be secured with a barrier to prevent them from being opened and a locker can be secured with a lock and a tarp to hide your items from prying eyes if your locker is a cage-style design.
Condo And Apartment Security Systems and Tips
The FBI reports that the average loss in a theft
is $2,799. A condo or apartment unit is typically smaller than a house which means there is less space for a thief to go through to find items to steal. A thief will typically go right to the places where they believe the most valuable items are and that’s typically the bedroom to find jewelry, wallets, electronics and other valuables.
In that regard, hiding valuables in a small space like a condo or apartment unit may largely be a waste of time offering nothing more than a false sense of security. While purchasing home and contents insurance to protect you should you suffer a theft is a good idea, doing a few other things to protect against the burglary in the first place is paramount.
Front Door
Adding a deadbolt to your front door is the cheapest but probably most cost effective way to protect what is likely the main and possibly only way someone can enter your unit unless you live on the ground floor. Adding a deadbolt ensures that if there is another copy of your key floating around in the hands of a previous owner or tenant, they can’t enter your unit.
You could also replace the current lock on your front door if it’s a resale unit and add a new deadbolt too.
You might need permission from your condo or apartment to add a lock on the front door and perhaps supply them with a spare key in case they need to enter your unit in an emergency ie. fire, water leak.
Windows
Most people in a condo or apartment don’t live on the ground floor that can easily be accessed through the window(s) or sliding door. But if window security is a concern either because you’re on a low floor or on a patio or rooftop, securing the windows with a proper lock and blocking the sliding track when you’re not home with a block of wood or steel rod is a cheap and quick way to achieve security.
Sliding Door
Some locking mechanisms on sliding doors are particularly weak. If you have a sliding screen door, there are a few simple ways to ensure no one can enter your unit this way. The cheapest way is to put a block of wood or steel rod in the track of the door to prevent it from being opened.
You can also purchase a so-called Charley Bar which attaches around the middle of the door to keep the sliding door from moving when the bar is in place. Many sliding doors come with a Charley Bar built in and it’s not a bad idea to add the block of wood or steel rod in the track at the bottom too as a back up.
Locker and Storage
A private locker for your own use or a public storage room that others have access to is a common place where condo and apartment dwellers suffer losses. With a private locker you may have the opportunity to provide your own lock leading into the locker and if you’re storing a bike or other personal effects inside, you might use a lock and chain or cable to tie them together to make it harder to steal. You might also cover the items with a blanket or tarp to shield them from view if you have a cage locker than others can peer into. If people can’t see what is in there, they may not bother breaking in to see what is inside.
Be careful with what you store in publicly accessible storage rooms that you share with other residents. Not only can you experience theft, you can also suffer vandalism if your personal effects are accessible to anyone entering the storage area.
Garage
If you have a garage spot for your personal use, the typical issue you may have is damage or theft or your car or other items you store nearby such as a bike. While condo and apartment garages often have cameras, there is no guarantee that the cameras catch 100% of what happens down. And if the building uses an old outdated camera system, it may not record properly, they may not store the video for more than a day or so and the image may be grainy in a darkened garage.
You may consider an inside the car mounted camera facing out to the front of the car if you’re concerned with vandalism or theft especially if you’re not sure about the quality of building security or if you know it’s not adequate. Double check your car insurance too to confirm your deductible and coverage is adequate.
Water
When you live in a building, you are typically responsible for damage that comes from your unit that affects other people. This includes water damage from a leak or flood coming from something inside your four walls. Water damage can be very expensive especially if by the time someone notices the leak or flood, it has gone down several floors and damaged multiple units.
Shutting off the main water supply in your condo when you are away for more than a day is a good practice. Ensuring that the apartment or condo board has a spare key to enter your unit in an emergency is also good. Shut off valves on individual taps and flood proof hose lines on your washing machine, dishwasher and toilet is a good option, too.
Also, ensure you have enough water damage and liability insurance coverage to protect you against expensive repairs suffered by you or your neighbors below you.
Fire
In a building, a fire typically occurs in an individual unit from the kitchen, a clothes dryer, clothes iron or electrical problem with an appliance. As with water damage, you can be held liable for damage to other units or to the building so having proper fire insurance is critical.
Don’t leave the kitchen unattended when cooking. Clean the lint receptacle in your dryer. Always ensure your iron or curling iron is unplugged when finished using it. Be careful with overheating laptops left on a bed and also be wary of cheap multi-receptacle power banks which can overheat and catch fire.
Condo And Apartment Security Systems
Your condo or apartment unit may already have a security alarm built in for you to use. With multiple units, the last thing an owner or management company wants is their building getting a reputation as one with a high level of crime and theft. Because of the different design and entry point(s) of a condo compared to a home, your security options may be different than a house.
Research suggests that between 17% and 23% of home dwellings have a monitored security system. Here are two possible companies to consider as they both offer building-specific options to help decrease the chance you suffer a break-in.
Abode Smart Security
Abode offers contract-free home security which is often an issue (the contract) with other security alarm companies particularly if you rent and don’t own your unit. Your chosen system can be set up on your own to include video storage, self-monitoring phone app, professional monitoring, home automation and the choice of phone, app or key fob control. They even have an instant Build Your System form where you tell them the layout of your condo/apartment/home and they suggest the best option for you.
Canary Home Security
Canary offers a wide variety of options that are usable in a condo or apartment. HD camera, motion detector, siren, two-way talk radio, climate monitor and an app that enables you to watch the inside of your unit remotely. The prices are reasonable and are a good option to consider if you’re on a budget but want some piece of mind.
Summary
While apartments and condos may offer a different level of security than a house given the limited methods of entering a unit, they also offer other challenges such as a locker, storage room, public garage that may need to be considered.
Something to keep in mind when choosing a unit to rent or purchase: Many better condominiums have security cameras in public areas, concierge or security staff at the front and a controlled entrance with a fob or other device. Sometimes just the fact that there is a live person at the building entrance may be enough for a potential thief to skip that building and look for one without the human element to deal with.
Statistics show that buildings with a live person stationed at the entrance and/or a controlled entrance have a slightly lower rate of crime compared to buildings that don’t have either.