4. Maintain Your Grounds
Carefully planned sight lines can make the approach to a building, and its parking, appear clear, understandable, and unthreatening. Property lines should be well defined by landscaping or fencing. But avoid solid walls, especially on patios and balconies – they create places to hide.
Many owners and managers take pride in their landscaping and use it as a selling tool to attract new residents. Well-manicured grounds and -maintained trees and shrubbery give the impression of quality and active management, says John Shannon, vice president of operations at Baltimore-based Shelter Properties. A community that creates the appearance of an attentive management team can deter some criminal elements.
While mature landscaping is the preferred approach, tall, massive, and opaque landscaping, which is sometimes used for privacy for first-floor residents, should not overwhelm the pedestrian approach to a building. Avoid creating sheltered spaces where trespassers can hide. “There is nothing wrong with low landscaping; it can still look lush,” explains Mayes.
Don’t allow plants near windows and doors to get above 3 feet, says Lozinak. And never let landscaping obstruct views from buildings. “When residents are in the parking lot, they want to know they can be seen from multiple areas in the property,” he says.
“If you’re going to have bushes around windows, they should be below the window sill,” adds Mayes. Also, remove older bushes with shallow spaces under them – they are perfect hiding places for potential criminals. And landscaping should never obscure the door. There shouldn’t be anything hanging over the entry, says Mayes.
5. Lock it Up
Entrances should be easy to find, serve as few individual units as possible, and have automatic locks that require keyed entry. It’s important that all doors and locks work properly, says Peacock. “If you’re on a tour and the automatic door doesn’t shut all the way, you have a problem.”
Preventative maintenance of hinges and closers can help prevent problems. “We have a huge focus on preventative maintenance,” explains Heidi Much of director, risk management at Village Green Cos., a Farmington Hills, Mich.-based multifamily real estate company. “It makes a big difference to the bottom line. So now, making sure doors are closing properly is looked at monthly versus quarterly.”
Exterior building entries and internal hallways should avoid deep recesses and blind sharp corners. To fix this problem, use mirrors to help residents see what’s around the corner.