.jpg)
Your Landlord Resource Podcast
Your Landlord Resource Podcast
Landlord Video Camera Do's and Don'ts
In this week’s episode of Your Landlord Resource Podcast, Kevin and I dive into one of the most common modern-day questions—can landlords legally install video cameras at their rental properties?
We break down the legal guidelines on where cameras are allowed, how to respect tenant privacy, and what to include in your lease addendums to keep you covered. We also talk about the etiquette behind using surveillance, who should have access to footage, and the hidden responsibilities that come with cloud-based storage systems.
Plus, we discuss how to handle situations when tenants install their own devices, such as doorbell cameras or interior security systems, and what your options are if those devices capture common or shared areas. You’ll also hear our recommendations on affordable, weatherproof cameras for both single-family and multi-unit properties, and the pros and cons of wired versus battery setups.
If you’ve been curious about adding smart technology like video surveillance or want to know what’s legal and what’s not, this episode will walk you through every step so you can make an informed, professional decision for your rentals.
🔗 Links & Resources
Listen to:
Episode 103: Installing Property Wide WiFi
Episode 6: Standard Operating Procedures
Episode 32: Our Lease and Addendum Breakdown, Pt 1
Episode 33: Our Lease and Addendum Breakdown, Pt 2
Episode 34: Our Lease and Addendum Breakdown, Pt 3
Video Cameras discussed: Ring, Blink, Arlo, Wyze, Eufy, Reolink
Connect with Us:
🌎 Visit our website
📧 Subscribe to our newsletter.
👆Click HERE for our FREE Landlord Forms and Doc’s
🤳Text Us: 650-489-4447. We love questions and love letters!
📩Email us at: Stacie@YourLandlordResource.com, Kevin@YourLandlordResource.com
➡️ Review the Podcast on Apple or on Spotify or YouTube
✔️Course Waitlist: From Marketing to Move In, Place Your Ideal Tenant
Doorbell cameras often capture hallways, neighbor's doors and windows, and shared walkways. So if a tenant's device is recording shared or common areas, or even other tenants as they come and go from their unit, you can and should ask the tenant to reposition or limit the recordings captured. You should also require approval in your lease so that you can address any issues, like how it should be installed or if the doorbell camera faces the neighbor's kitchen window, before the device is actually installed. Again, laws vary by state, especially when it comes to capturing audio. So, even if you are not installing the cameras, you need to know your and your tenant's rights, in case another tenant or even a neighbor wants to install any video cameras.
Welcome to Your Landlord Resource podcast. Many moons ago when I started as a landlord, I was as green as it gets. I may have had my real estate license, but I lack confidence and the hands-on experience needed when it came to dealing with tenants, leases, maintenance, and bookkeeping after many failed attempts. Fast forward to today, Kevin and I have doubled our doors and created an organized. Professionally operated rental property business. Want to go from overwhelm to confident if you're an ambitious landlord or maybe one in the making. Join us as we provide strategies and teach actionable steps to help you reach your goals and the lifestyle you desire. All well building is streamlined and profitable rental property business. This is Your Landlord Resource podcast.
Stacie:Hey there, landlords. Thanks so much for listening to the Your Landlord Resource podcast today. For those of you tuning in for the first time, my name is Stacie Casella and I'm here with my husband and business partner, and his name is Kevin Kilroy.
Kevin:Welcome everyone. Thanks for tuning in today.
Stacie:So. As you may or may not know, about six months ago, Kevin and I had wifi installed at our Sixplex in Sacramento. Now the decision to add this function serve two purposes. Well, I guess technically three. One, we have a midterm rental at this complex and we're considering adding another one. And for those of you unfamiliar with midterm rentals, they are, when you rent your unit out, usually for 30 days or more, and the unit is fully furnished and includes all utilities, including internet. I'm sure you guessed it, but the rent for these units typically goes for, I don't know, at least 25% more than an unfurnished rental. Obviously because of all the furnishings, but also because the person staying there is not committed to a long-term lease, which is where, you know, a discount would come in. So, because we have one of these midterm rentals and we, you know, we're pretty sure what we're gonna be, doing another one, we had to provide wifi to the building. Now we had another property that was a family owned property. It had sold, so we transferred the internet service from that property to this new midterm rental when we were getting it all set up. The problem is that the price on that was around$129 a month. Now I'm no genius, but I knew we could get internet for much less money. And after a lot of research we found that we could install fiber optic internet to the building. Which could be extended to all six units plus one more connection for us to use as management for 79 bucks a month.
Kevin:I mean sounds like a no brainer, right. Unfortunately, we are not super techie, and even though yes, we could extend internet to the building and have seven connections, we found out that the connections would not be private and secure. So we had to make another decision. And of course this was after we had pulled our tenants to gauge their interest in paying us for the use of our wifi connection, which all but two of the tenants wanted in. That decision was whether we should just scrap the idea completely or move forward and pay a broadband tech to install individual access points to each unit so that each connection was private and secure. And as Stacie already mentioned, we did move forward with the installation. And so now all of the units, including the midterm rental, have wifi available for them to use. Now, if you wanna listen to that episode, you can go to your landlord resource.com/episode 1 0 3 and it's called We Installed Property Wide wifi, the Pros, Cons, and What To Know. Now in that episode, we laid it all out from how we came to our decision, how much the installation and parts cost, what labor was involved, and how much we charge our tenants for the service.
Stacie:Yeah, and to be honest, I have had installing property wide wifi on my mind for quite a while, When I found out that our area was now able to get fiber optic, I really moved forward in learning more about it. And honestly, I learned so much more than I ever thought or knew was involved. But anyway, enough about that. If you wanna know more, check out episode 1 0 3. Okay, so one reason that we wanted wifi was because we have to provide internet for the midterm rentals. The other reason was, like Kevin said, a minute ago, was to provide a service to the tenants and get paid for it. If we had to have it for the midterm rentals, then why not just offer it up to all the tenants for a fee and make some extra money on it, right?
Kevin:Yeah, and that part worked out really well. I mean, four of the six units are using the new wifi and the tenant seemed to be really happy with it.
Stacie:I will say, knock on wood, I thought we were gonna have more issues with it. And it worried me because we live so far away. You know, that we couldn't just pop down in the basement of the sixplex and reset the modem if we needed to,'cause you know, we live over 90 minutes away.
Kevin:Well, we have all that covered now because the tech company we hired can help us remotely if needed.
Stacie:Right. And I know that now, but before, I wasn't sure how we're gonna handle that issue. Anyway, the third reason that we wanna do install wifi is because we're working towards the property having more smart technology. So we have smart locks on many of the units, which allows tenants to enter with a code perfect for the midterm rentals, by the way. Or they can use the traditional method, you know, good old key. But to use these smart locks, we needed wifi. Smart thermostats are one other technology that we'd like to look into, as well as video surveillance cameras on the front entry and the back gates to the patio. Again, both of which need wifi to operate. And our tenants in this complex are on the younger side. I'd say between 26 and 35 is the average age. Many in that age bracket, want and enjoy smart technology.
Kevin:Okay, I want to clarify something real quick. Much of what we have discussed thus far really pertains to multi-family properties. You know, anything with two units and up. And if you have a single family home rental, maybe installing wifi is not beneficial to you. Well, unless you are house hacking and wanna have secure wifi, then yes, maybe you need to get a separate access point. But if you are thinking you would like to have security cameras regardless of the size of your rental, you would need to install your own wifi to operate it. Now, could you use the tenant's wifi? I mean, technically, yes, but it's really not advisable.. You have no control over the connection if they don't pay the bill and services cut off, or if they change the password, which you would need to install any smart device. Now, could you install the cameras or Smart Lock and let them connect it? Sure you can, but in that case, just work with the tenant and have them purchase what they want and either you install it or they pay someone to install it properly. We really are not proponents of allowing tenants to work on the units themselves. I mean, many tenants have no idea how to install things, and you certainly don't want them to mess up the siding or drill into the roof when installing cameras into the eaves. I mean, that's just our take. Again, this is generally for single family homes. Multi-family properties you likely would be handling the install of any cameras.
Stacie:All right, so let's get into what you all need to know about installing video cameras at your properties. We're gonna be discussing the legal side of things, like what is allowed and what's not. The etiquette of having them, like where do install them. Who has control of the footage of the cameras. How to handle if tenants wanna install'em. And you guys video doorbells fall into this whole conversation today. What else? Oh, yes. Very important. What you need to cover in your lease addendums. And then we're gonna go over some ideas on the cost and some products that we have checked out and are considering not only for the sixplex but for our personal home as well. So. A lot to cover, but we know that you're all busy people, and we're gonna do our best to keep this episode around 30 minutes or so. All right. First up, let's talk about the legality of installing video cameras at your rentals. So is installing cameras at your rentals even allowed? Yes, but only in certain areas. So think common areas and mostly always on the exterior. We'll get to why that is in a minute. You can install cameras to get coverage on walkways, driveways, entrances, and maybe patio areas like, like a backyard. Basically, you can install cameras where people have no reasonable expectation of privacy. You cannot install cameras inside a tenant's private living space. And I, I really hope all of you already understand that, but that is a huge no-no. If you're a perv and you wanna hide cameras in your units to spy on tenants, you can just stop listening right now'cause this episode is not gonna help you. Audio recording is a totally different legal minefield. Many states require one or two party consent to record audio, so if you have cameras that record sound, you need to check with your state and local landlord tenant laws to find out if you can use'em or not. The law may also allow it if the tenant consents, but that does not include the consent of their guests or delivery people, repair techs, or anybody else that comes onto the property. And from what we've read, this can be a slippery slope, so be mindful of recording audio. And the last thing I wanna say about the legal aspects of video surveillance is there are HUD and privacy organizations who warn about being overbroad with what you can see on your video cameras. You have to consider privacy impacts and for housing in your decision on where to place your cameras.
Kevin:Yeah, and I want to give you all a couple tips on etiquette and tenant relations when it comes to installing cameras. Do yourself a favor, and before you do anything, discuss the idea of cameras with your tenants. You absolutely want to tell them about the cameras before installation and why you feel it's important. Now for us in Midtown Sacramento, we do have some homeless people who like to wander onto the property. Some like to hop the fence and hang out in the back patio, and our tenants have definitely had to deal with their stuff being stolen, like bikes and packages that are left on the porch. And you know, as owners, we want the tenants to have a good experience living in our units. We hate it when we hear something bad has happened. Once you and your tenants are on the same page, you'll need to have them sign an addendum and we'll go over what the addendum needs to say in a little bit. But once everyone is all in agreement, you should put up signage around the property to let others know they're being recorded. This should also help deter bad behavior, but you know these days some people are just brazen and couldn't care less. The next thing you wanna do is set up your standard operating procedures on having cameras. So things like, what's the procedure if a tenant asks you for footage? Who has access to the footage? And what are the passcodes? How long will the recordings be kept? And for this one, keep recordings only as long as necessary. And focus on a short retention period, say no more than 30 days. The last tip on good etiquette is if a tenant complains that they feel the camera is targeting them, respond quickly. Document your conversations and what you did to resolve it, like maybe adjusting the placement or adding privacy zones. Which is pretty common with video camera technology these days.
Stacie:Yeah, that privacy zone thing, it gets me for a personal home.'Cause from the driveway, I don't need to see every damn car that goes by, but as soon as I set the privacy zone to just record activity in our driveway, that was the day that someone comes along and drops paint off their truck right in front of the house, and of course it didn't get recorded.
Kevin:Yeah. Well, I mean, well, luckily we caught that early. I was able to wash it down before it became a real mess.
Stacie:Yeah, I know. It's still irritating it. I mean, I'm not sure what we would've even done if we knew who it dropped it anyway.
Kevin:Right.
Stacie:Okay, so let's talk placement of the cameras. Like I mentioned before, keep it to the exterior like entrances, walkways, driveways, parking lots, mailboxes, all those are acceptable locations. You wanna angle the cameras so they capture property common areas. And listen, when I say this next part, you do not want to angle the cameras towards any windows of your rental, or windows of your neighbors. You also do not want to place them in private locations like private patios or hot tubs. And yes, hot tubs rules are acceptable, but from what we have researched, hot tubs are a no-no.
Kevin:Well, closeup on the hot tub is a real no no. If the hot tub is in a common area and your camera is getting like a barbecue area, a pool, a dog run. The hot tub may be way in the back. I think you'll be okay.
Stacie:I don't know. You guys need to check with your lawyer'cause we've heard stories about tenants not liking cameras on hot tubs.
Kevin:music
Stacie:Yeah, pretty much. So. Sorry. Pretty much. Yeah. Uh, maybe we don't wanna know what goes on in those hot tubs. All right, back to placement. Also, as mentioned earlier, do not place cameras inside the unit ever. All right. Now, for anyone who has interior entrances with hallways or stairs, you can place a video camera inside that common area, but use caution that the cameras are not accessible to any footage of the inside of someone's unit. As if one person opens their door and someone else inside is walking around naked, I, you know, you, you can't be able to catch that on that camera. Kevin, what is that stupid smirk on your face?
Kevin:Nope. Nope. Not me. Believe me, I do not wanna see naked tenants. I'm serious. I would never be able to speak with them again because all I would see was them being naked.
Stacie:Yeah. Yeah. I don't like that. We've good. All right, let's move on. Okay, so I touched on privacy zones a little bit ago.
Kevin:Hey, now. Sorry. Sorry,
Stacie:Dude, get your, your head's in the gutter today. All right. Many cameras allow you to mask parts of the frame, so that would be useful if the camera for a walkway also happened to catch the neighbor's side window. So you wanna get cameras that have a privacy zone option so that you can protect yourself legally. And like I said, they're also helpful if you don't wanna record every car that drives by in the front street. You can set that privacy zone to end at the sidewalk or the front property line, or even like right before the property line for your neighbor. Now the next thing I wanna touch on briefly is to discuss who has access to the footage and how to handle that data security. This should go without saying, but you really need to limit the access to yourselves as owners and your property manager if you have one. When it comes to account security, make sure that, that you wanna use unique logins. You wanna use two factor authorization. And have audit logs showing who accessed the footage and when. Because if a complaint is filed, you're gonna need those logs to back you up. And don't think that, obviously in a very serious legal case, that lawyers cannot find out every single time you or someone else has been on that account, checking the cameras. So as part of your standard operating procedures, check the cameras on set days. Or, don't check'em at all unless a tenant contacts you and asks for footage. Because honestly, for us, the reasoning behind even wanting to install these cameras is to deter bad things from happening on the property, not to snoop on our tenants. If something does happen, we would like to be able to offer the tenant the proof needed for an insurance claim, or God forbid if they're injured or assaulted footage to share with the police. The last thing I wanna address when it comes to security is if you use a cloud vendor, because make sure you check their privacy policy and law enforcement requests procedures, and here's why. When it comes to using cloud-based camera systems, you need to be aware of how data storage and access actually works. Most major camera brands like Ring, Nest, Arlo, and many others, they store their video footage on their own remote servers, not locally on your device. This means that the vendor, not you, controls where and how that footage is stored. These companies generally reserve the right to access or disclose video footage in certain circumstances, such as when complying with a lawful request from law enforcement or to enforce their own terms of service. Some providers have publicly confirmed that they may share footage with law enforcement without the account holder's consent if they believe an emergency situation exists involving imminent danger. And each vendor also sets its own rules for how long that footage is stored and when, or how it can be permanently deleted. Even if you delete a clip, it may remain in their system backup for a limited time according to the vendor's data retention policy. And because of this, landlords should always review the camera's vendor privacy policy and their law enforcement request guidelines before installing or activating any cloud connected system, which, you know, honestly is pretty much all those cameras these days. These documents explain exactly who can access the recordings, under what condition, and how long that footage is retained. Understanding those terms is essential, especially since the footage is technically managed by the vendor and not exclusively under the landlord's control.
Kevin:I did not know that.
Stacie:Yeah. I knew there was some things about storage, but I had no idea that they could release footage to authorities without our consent. I mean, that was very interesting to me.
Kevin:Yeah, I mean, for sure. Man, there is a lot to know about tech, isn't there?
Stacie:Yeah, and the, and the hard part is, is it changes all the time, so it's important to stay up to date on this as much as possible.
Kevin:I mean, that's right, it makes sense. Now I know earlier we talked about wifi and mentioned it's not a good idea to use the tenant's wifi when you are installing and managing video cameras. If you want video cameras at your property, you need to install your own separate secure LAN/VLAN with its own router and firewall rules. And this is exactly what we did in Sacramento. And it was not cheap to set it up this way, it was the best, most secure way for us and for the tenants who are paying us for the use of the internet. And let me clarify. When we hook up the smart locks, or when we do video cameras, we will use our own network, not the tenants. For security reasons, we do not want the tenants or anyone they share the password with to be able to access our hardware or accounts. Listen, I have no idea how it's done, but think of it like when you're in a hotel and use their wifi and they make you click a box acknowledging that you understand that it's not secure, that anyone can hack into your laptop or phone or whatever you've signed on with. This is the same thing. Anyone with the password to your wifi that your smart technology items are running off of, has the ability to hack into it and make changes to your account.
Stacie:Yeah. I really do need to be better at disconnecting my devices after I'm done using about a hotel or in public. And it kind of freaks me out. All right, we're gonna move on. On how to handle tenants installed cameras. And you guys, this includes those doorbell cameras as well. So inside the unit, tenants can do whatever they want with cameras. A lot of people have cameras inside their house to keep an eye on their pets when they're away at work. They control their own private space and can have cameras if they so choose. And do not try to add in the lease clause that you ban cameras inside the unit, it's not enforceable. The only thing you can add in your lease is if the installation of the cameras cause permanent damage or alterations, the tenant's gonna have to put it back the way it was, or they have to pay you for the repair when they move out. Which leads me to doorbell cameras. We did have a tenant who installed a ring doorbell and her dad drilled right through the siding into the wall of the building and she didn't even tell us that she was installing it, we just showed up and there it was. Now, if we didn't really care that much, what's done was done, but it did face the neighbor's kitchen window. And if you'd listened before, you might remember that entries for our upstairs units are about 10 feet away from the neighbor's second story, and you can see right into their home. So we contacted the neighbors, made sure that they were okay with the doorbell camera, and they said they were fine and they joked about putting on a show for her. But you know, we did our due diligence and had to have a conversation with the tenant about it. And honestly, she didn't even think about it. She just wanted to feel more secure. Of course, this all happened many years ago, and now we have a clause in the lease regarding alterations and discussing doorbell cameras. When she moved out, her dad did fill the holes that were drilled. But anyway. Doorbell cameras often capture hallways, neighbor's doors and windows, and shared walkways. So if a tenant's device is recording shared or common areas, or even other tenants as they come and go from their unit, you can and should ask the tenant to reposition or limit the recordings captured. You should also require approval in your lease so that you can address any issues, like how it should be installed or if the doorbell camera faces the neighbor's kitchen window before the device is actually installed. Again, laws vary by state, especially when it comes to capturing audio. So even if you are not installing the cameras, you need to know your and your tenant's rights, in case another tenant or even a neighbor wants to install any video cameras.
Kevin:So you just mentioned the lease.
Stacie:Yes. It's always important to use that lease to address anything and everything that you can think of that might come up or be an issue.
Kevin:Right. So let me quickly go over the lease addendums and what to include when it comes to video cameras and surveillance. Your addendum should indicate the purpose and locations where your cameras may be installed. Again, this is the common areas or shared areas and the exterior. And this may seem obvious, but make sure you have a statement in the addendum that says something along the lines of, landlord will not place cameras inside tenants unit or in private spaces. This right away will remove any questions as to having cameras to snoop and allow the tenant to not ask to have this added for their own protection. And as we have mentioned, know and understand the state and local laws regarding capturing audio and make sure to include a section in the addendum regarding audio prohibition or a policy consistent with the applicable law. It should also be noted who has access to the video footage, meaning the owners or property managers. How long the footage will be retained, which is important for them to know in case they need to request a copy in the event of a theft or a break-in or something along that nature. And how footage requests need to be submitted. This can be from the tenant or if you rather by law enforcement. And then how requests are handled. Will you provide the video and audio? Just the video? Some videos are long and hard to email, so you might have to load it onto a small data storage device in which you may have to charge a fee for your time and the flash drive you provide. The addendum should also note who is responsible for repairs, maintenance, and damage to the video cameras, or any damage caused by the tenant during installation. And finally, for tenant installed cameras, you need to have rules. They would be much like the landlord rules, meaning for security purposes, they're only allowed outside the unit. It prohibits recording other units or common areas without permission, and the tenant must remove the cameras and repair any holes or damage at move out.
Stacie:So if I had to pick one part of this episode that the landlords need to pay closest attention to, it would be that last section You know, leases cover your butt and they're there for you to put clauses just like the ones that Kevin mentioned, to protect yourself and your property. If you don't address it, tenants can easily say they didn't know or have any guidance on what to do or not to do when it comes to video surveillance. That means you have to backtrack and address it as it comes up, which is always much more difficult to deal with. So do the work upfront so everyone is on the same page from the get go. And if you're one of those landlords that signs one lease and does not update it until the next tenant moves in, which is what? 2, 3, 5, maybe 10 years later. You're asking for trouble. Renew your tenant every single year or when the lease expires. Check that their income is sufficient, and create a whole new lease every single year. Because laws change, new issues arise, and some are no longer valid. So update your lease every time it expires. Video cameras are relatively new now that they have developed them to be a lot more cost effective. Rules and procedures with pets have changed a lot too, and we rarely have a tenant who needs a telephone hookup these days. Most just use cell phones now. Same with water beds. Those used to be a real problem.
Kevin:Oh my God. When was the last time you saw a water bed?
Stacie:1989, and that's my point. A waterbed in a second story unit can be an issue for flooding to the unit below, right? I, I believe we still have a line in there that we don't allow'em, but I highly doubt we'll ever see one again.
Kevin:Again, you never know, right? You guys, that is why our lease, and I'm slightly embarrassed to admit this. But our lease is now around 50 pages long.
Stacie:Isn't that insane? You know, we've mentioned this before, but we sign more places on our leases than we do when we purchase a property. So, but you know, we're, we're in California, which is a tenant friendly state. We also own in Idaho, which is, you know, more landlord friendly. But, we have to be very diligent and include anything and everything to cover ourselves and our properties.
Kevin:Exactly. I mean, there is a whole business aspect to owning and renting property that many do not consider. And once it's all set up, you only need to make small tweaks here and there. All right, you guys we're almost done here. We did say we would include some brands that would be the ones to check out if you're considering installing video cameras at your rental properties, and I guess your personal homes as well. Now I want you to remember, especially those listening to this in the future, the technology changes often, so whatever we discuss regarding brands may not be valid at some point. Alright, I wanna start off with Ring cameras. We have these in our mountain homes, as we have had attempted break-ins as well as bears that have gotten in and made a huge mess. We just purchased a four pack in July at the Amazon Prime days and got a pretty good deal. We did purchase the battery operated ones, and so far so good on the battery life. I mean, it's been about six weeks and they're all showing around 85%. We also do not get a lot of notifications on them because we set up the zoning to only capture the decks and the entries, not the street in front. But they are crystal clear and are rated for cold weather, I think four below zero, which we really don't see it that cold in the Sierras of California.
Stacie:Well, one thing that we did that did not work out was to place a couple of the cameras inside the window facing out to the entry. Because at night all we get is the reflection of the window, which is no good. I did do some research on that and, you can look it up if you use Ring cameras, but there is a way, there is a workaround on that. But you do have to leave a light on outside in order for that to work, to use an outdoor camera inside.
Kevin:Well, that, that's good to know because I forgot about that. But we do have plans to install them outside, like up in the eaves so it should be better for us.
Stacie:I, I was trying to play some indoors, so, so I didn't have to haul out the ladder over the snow if I had to change the batteries in the middle of the winter. And Ring does sell solar panels that I hear work well, but again, these cameras are kind of tucked back up into the eaves, so there's no way to connect that solar. But that would be a good option if you're placing a high on a building, like over a parking lot or something like that.
Kevin:Yeah, that's right. And I believe Ring also has hardwired cameras in case you do have an outlet in your eaves, which some homes do you know, for Christmas lights.
Stacie:Yeah, they do. I'm actually purchasing two more of those for other areas. One of the mountain homes does, does have exterior junction boxes and I'm gonna plug them in.
Kevin:Yeah. And the cost for ring is what, about$40 a month?
Stacie:Yeah, the price went way up. It used to be$10 a month and included service to call the police if there was a break in. Now it's 40 bucks just to monitor it and have the recordings kept on the cloud for 30 days.
Kevin:All right. The other video cameras that came highly recommended were the Blink Outdoor Wireless cameras, and they have a two year battery life. Now at our personal home, we have video cameras, which unfortunately recently became outdated, and when we called the company out to see if there was anything they could do to save them, the installer, who by the way, should be selling the product for the company he works for, he actually told us he uses Blink cameras for his home and they were great. I mean, he even pulled out his phone and showed us the quality of the video. It was pretty good.
Stacie:And you guys we're gonna link the brands that we're talking about here today, so you can go check'em out on your own and compare'em for your own application.
Kevin:Okay. Other brands we found popping up over and over again during our research were WYZE, Arlo, Nest, which is Google, EUFY, and REOLINK. And here are some other things to consider. If you are using battery operated cameras, think about how they will get charged or replaced. Would that be your responsibility or the tenants? And if it's the tenants, are you okay with them climbing the ladder to access those cameras? Now you can go the route of professional installation, which would allow you the option of having what is called POE, which stands for power over ethernet. So you don't need to have power to the unit or a battery. The ethernet line from your internet connection would come through the wall and provide the low voltage power needed to operate the camera. And this is what we have done with the internet access points in each unit, so we didn't need to use a plug or have a cord hanging from the box to the plug. It's clean and neat and essentially maintenance free other than having to clean the lens should a spider web or something get on it. Another thing to consider is the cost for ongoing cloud subscriptions, and they can range from$10 into the hundreds. And some companies allow you to have multiple properties on your subscription, some charge by the location. Now Ring does allow multiple locations, of which now we have three properties on the account, and that's under$40 a month cost. The last thing you need to consider and think about is weatherproofing of the cameras. What is the weather like when you're having these cameras? Some can handle heavy snow and rain and dust, some cannot. Some batteries will stop working or drain much faster when they go below freezing for too long, which makes a solid case for hard wiring cameras whenever possible. Again, hard wiring can be physically plugging them into an exterior outlet or using the power over ethernet option, which usually requires professional installation. And of course many companies do have small solar panels you can attach to the home to recharge rechargeable batteries.
Stacie:All right, you guys, that's about it on what you need to know and consider if you wanna install video cameras or allow tenants to install'em. We did go over a lot today, so here's a quick recap. Do a legal check on what the state and local laws are regarding video surveillance and audio recording with regards to tenant privacy. Make sure you do a risk assessment. Where are the incidents happening? Focus on those areas like parking areas and entrances. Make sure tenants know that the cameras are not to monitor the residents. No stalking your tenants you guys, please don't do that. Dial in your policy and your lease addendums. For more on standard operating procedures, check out episode six, which is called Creating Standard Operating Procedures for Your Rental Property. That is a great place to start to learn more about what they are and why they are so important to you as rental property owners. We're gonna link that episode in the show notes as well. Make sure that your service in cloud software is secure. Use two factor auth authentication, authe authorization, something like that. It's a two factor. Use the two-factor thing. Do firmware updates and use isolated VAN for video cameras. Do not share the internet with the tenant. For tech, check out the brands that we mentioned. We have personal experience with Ring cameras and have had solid recommendations for Blink cameras as well. And for installation, find an alarm company to install the cameras using power over ethernet if you don't wanna deal with changing those batteries every four to six months. Alright, that's our show for today. Thank you you guys, so much for taking the time outta your busy schedule to listen to what we have to say about self-managing your rental properties. Kevin and I are very grateful and humbled to be able to share what we know to help you on your journey. Of course, we hope you enjoyed the episode and got some helpful information out of it as well. If you wouldn't mind helping us out, we would really appreciate if you guys could go on and leave us a kind review, or even share our podcast with another landlord that you might know. If you wanna hear more, follow or subscribe to the podcast so that each week the episodes are downloaded right into your favorite podcast platform. And we'd love to stay in contact with you. So if you have any questions or you wanna suggest a subject for a podcast, you can text us at 6 5 0 4 8 9 4 4 4 7. You can email us at stacie@yourlandlordresource.com. That's Stacie with an IE or kevin@yourlandlordresource.com. We're gonna link that in the show notes as well. Also in the show notes, you're gonna be able to find links to all the downloads that we offer. Ways to sign up for our free newsletter, links to our private Facebook group. It's just for landlords. Our social media accounts on Instagram, Facebook, and our YouTube account where we share very informative and detailed tips and tricks, for landlords. So go check those out. I think that's about it. Thanks again, and until next time, you've got this landlords.
.png)
.png)