Need advice on a wireless cam system

[windguy]

SF has severe rent control. It's so bad that I have a landlord tenant attorney on my speed dial. If you make a mistake on who you rent to as a "house sitter", you're screwed. That person, once he establishes tenancy, can rent the remainder of the house out room by room. They can pretty much destroy your house with no repercussions. A friend of mine visited one of his apartment units only to find that the tenant had subdivided each room of the apartment up with new drywall and was renting it out room by room. Another friend had a tenant who was dealing drugs from the property. It cost him over $100k to evict the tenant. If you are dumb enough to rent to someone who falls under the status of a "protected tenant", they basically have a lifetime tenancy. My parents have another friend who has a multi-unit apartment building. He purposefully left the units empty because he didn't want to deal with the rent control. He held the apartment long enough to make a tidy profit and then sold it for a premium, because in SF's crazy rent controlled market, empty buildings sell for a premium.

But we digress. The solution is not to deal with tenants at this point. My mom wants to sell the property eventually.

I just want to secure the building enough so that we're not bothered by constant break-ins.

At this point I think I'll try to run a couple of IP cams to the front and side of the house where the windows are most exposed. The backyard and basement levels will be covered by wireless cams. I hope having a mesh router will make a difference. Certainly internet speed is not going to be an issue with a fiber connection.

Understand about the fear of getting a bad tenant. Not all tenants are problematic but you have to make that choice.
How will the addition of a camera network secure the building better and prevent break-ins? Not trying to give you a hard time but would like to understand your reasoning.
Adding more equipment to the house just gives the vandals more things to take, no?
Is the house empty of furniture and things?
What are vandals doing inside?
How are the vandals entering the house? doors, windows?
Beefing up the points of entry might be money better spent than a camera system.
Good luck!

 

[sdkid]

I read it all. I think a louder set of alarm speakers could help....but cameras don't seem like a solution for you. You said that Mom (or Grandma?) wants to sell "eventually"..... As an ex-Californian, I suggest you

SELL NOW!​

Get what you can for it and get the hell out of Commiefornia!!! Let it be the next owner's headache. Let Mom or Grandma know that some vagrant could potentially establish residency in it by breaking in and squatting there--- that would ruin the property and cost many tens of thousands MORE than pricing it Right to sell fast right now. Visions of getting the top premium price could cost more than the gain you may get from waiting.

my 2 cents.

btw--- don't rent to this guy....

(Pacific Heights, 1990)

 

[Video1]

I agree with you. We've got a bid to have a heavy and robust front gate installed that covers the alcove to the entryway. The vagrants have been brazenly trying to crowbar (successfully a couple of times now) their way through a very heavy and thick wood door. They must have thought there were a lot of valuables inside. What they found was a mostly empty house. Thank goodness we have curtains all around so they can't see in.

SF also has a huge homeless problem. It would not surprise me if they eventually try to squat in the house.

So yes, we're going to beef up all the points of entry.

I just installed a Google Mesh wifi system in my own house and I'm getting 90 Mbps download times throughout the house on wifi now. I'm hoping that this will help with whatever video cam system we eventually choose.

Understand about the fear of getting a bad tenant. Not all tenants are problematic but you have to make that choice.
How will the addition of a camera network secure the building better and prevent break-ins? Not trying to give you a hard time but would like to understand your reasoning.
Adding more equipment to the house just gives the vandals more things to take, no?
Is the house empty of furniture and things?
What are vandals doing inside?
How are the vandals entering the house? doors, windows?
Beefing up the points of entry might be money better spent than a camera system.
Good luck!

 

[Video1]

100% correct. But dealing with mom isn't easy. She's 85 and slowing down. She wants to sell but she also has tax consequences to consider. As I stated in the above post, we're going to beef up the security around the house, fix it up. Hopefully mom will agree to put it on the market by next spring. Our family has divested ourselves of most of our SF real estate. Despite the appreciation potential, managing property there is just a nightmare.

But I digress.

I do wonder if anyone here has gotten a wifi cam to actually work? Certainly some of these must work because so many different brands are being sold.

I read it all. I think a louder set of alarm speakers could help....but cameras don't seem like a solution for you. You said that Mom (or Grandma?) wants to sell "eventually"..... As an ex-Californian, I suggest you

SELL NOW!​

Get what you can for it and get the hell out of Commiefornia!!! Let it be the next owner's headache. Let Mom or Grandma know that some vagrant could potentially establish residency in it by breaking in and squatting there--- that would ruin the property and cost many tens of thousands MORE than pricing it Right to sell fast right now. Visions of getting the top premium price could cost more than the gain you may get from waiting.

my 2 cents.

btw--- don't rent to this guy....
View attachment 69208
(Pacific Heights, 1990)

 

[shojus102]

I have tried most all of the wireless solutions, and like most have alluded to, they are NOT that great! I DO have a few Arlo Pro 2's that are in my back yard, and in areas that I'm not concerned for them to get stolen, but those require battery changes if NOT hardwired, and are fairly easy to just steal if not properly secured. The whole concept to wifi cams have been for convenience, and that's pretty much what they offer, but your situation requires a shotgun and 00 Buckshot... It's disgusts me to even read this thread to be honest. I wish you the best of luck my friend, times are taking a turn for the worse it seems, and if you live in a state that has such liberal and lax policies, you end up getting what you have now.

 

[mat200]

U-Haul Executive of The Year- Big SURPRISE

 

[Video1]

I have tried most all of the wireless solutions, and like most have alluded to, they are NOT that great! I DO have a few Arlo Pro 2's that are in my back yard, and in areas that I'm not concerned for them to get stolen, but those require battery changes if NOT hardwired, and are fairly easy to just steal if not properly secured. The whole concept to wifi cams have been for convenience, and that's pretty much what they offer, but your situation requires a shotgun and 00 Buckshot... It's disgusts me to even read this thread to be honest. I wish you the best of luck my friend, times are taking a turn for the worse it seems, and if you live in a state that has such liberal and lax policies, you end up getting what you have now.

Yeah that seems to be the general consensus. Fortunately my mom is going to sell the house so this is just a temporary solution.

GAWD do't get me started on the People's Republic of California. They'd prosecute a homeowner for defending themselves.

 

[shojus102]

Very sad indeed! Good luck brother!