Residential Manager Security

Residential Manager Security Tips From Overton Security

Helping you stay protected.

As a residential manager, you will often find yourself with a prospective tenant in an isolated area that only offers you little protection but gives cover for criminal activity, including assault or robbery. Please assist us in helping you be safe and secure by following a few simple but effective security tips.

Residential communities have experienced an extraordinary growth surge, causing a lapse in security, with managers becoming less alert and easy targets for criminal activity.

When showing an apartment, leave a written record of who you are showing it to, which apartment, and when you expect to be back. Find another employee and tell them where you are going and the time you will be back.
Report all lights that are not working to your management or security provider, both inside the building and in the parking lot. Ask your landscaper to cut all bushes short, especially around buildings.
If you are suspicious of someone, do not show up at the apartment right away. Ask the applicant to wait until you find someone to accompany you. If you find yourself unable to contact anyone, ask the applicant to come back at another time, and you will arrange for your assistant to be there.
Make sure your employees carry a small siren or whistle and even pepper spray on the master key ring. Always have a flash light available for showing apartments after dark. With a little moderate high-tech, such as inexpensive two-way radios or pagers used with codes to alert, you can discourage most criminals.
Report to management or security any suspicious persons or vehicles hanging around the facility that don’t seem to have a purpose. Be aware of thieves who appear as “pseudo-servicemen.” When unsure, check them out.
If you see something that does not belong, such as a lunch pail, briefcase, paper bag, carrying case, liter of liquid just sitting unattended and foreign to the area, don’t touch it, report it to management or security.
Always do a criminal background check on any applicant you are about to hire. This can save you serious problems in the future.
Vacant apartments can be irresistible to certain criminals or the homeless, make sure they are secured with all windows and doors closed and latched. Have security check them periodically
When showing an apartment, leave the door wide open and try to position yourself between the prospect and open door. If the prospect wishes to see another apartment, make sure you let someone know your destination.
Do not allow residents or anyone not authorized to use the master key to enter an apartment. If a tenant is locked out, open the door as a courtesy and keep the keys in your possession.
You can order a computer printout from your local police department that lists all patrol police calls to your complex over the last few years. You can use these numbers to set goals and in evaluating your security performance.
Invite crime prevention units from your local police department or from Overton Security to analyze your crime prevention program. Specific suggestions will be made in writing as to improving employee/tenant security, as well as facility and perimeter security.
Do not fumble around looking for keys. When you walk out to your vehicle or back to your apartment, have the correct key ready to insert in the lock.
Don’t be caught off guard with a female applicant as many women can be as violent as men. They also have been known to set up an agent for robbery by a male accomplice.
When showing a unit, if possible, try to keep furniture between you and the applicant as a barrier and leave all doors open with the exit door directly behind you.

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