Whenever I show condos, I always hate when the concierge has to “unlock” the elevator so I can access the floor I’m going to.
I always tell my buyer clients, “This is such overkill! There’s a lock on the front door, a concierge at a desk, a lock on the door of your unit – why the need for a FOB to access your floor in the elevator?”
Well, I guess there are some condos that are too secure, because others are not secure enough.
Call me a creep, but watch me walk right into this condo, which has virtually no security at the back…
If you didn’t know me, and you didn’t read my blogs and watch my videos on a regular basis, you might think that video was weird.
Break and enter?
Well, I didn’t really “break” anything, and I was there to visit a friend.
So……let’s call it a wash.
The point in all of this, is that a cynic like me wonders why we need FOB access for the elevator so we can to go our floor, when every other area of the building is on lockdown, and then all the while, we do have buildings like the one in the video which could really benefit from another deadbolt or two.
Now……..if I could only figure out how to shoot videos sideways on my iPhone……
………..sorry!
IanC
at 7:33 am
Our condo still has physical keys that open all doors that work in combination of the fob. That’s not good.
I’m also concerned about parking. Here in Southcore, I have a hard time renting my parking to residents, in an older building with lots of resident parking. I don’t rent to outsiders as I feel bad for the elderly here who have expressed concerns. And also the parking clicker and fob opens all doors, including the gym and bike rooms with unlocked bikes.
And then there’s Airbnb… (another conversation altogether)
But an unlocked outside door? Is it a new or old condo? Or just broken? That’s just ridiculous (but not unbelievable).
Lee
at 9:22 am
My condo may be the most secure in the city… You need your fob to get into the lobby from outside, fob to get to the elevators, fob to get to your floor on the elevator… and we have a concierge in the lobby. The parking garage is similarly locked down (you need your fob twice to get to resident parking), and we have cameras and a concierge on duty in the back. Overkill for sure. There must be a happy medium between total lockdown and open to everyone.
penguin
at 9:56 am
I wish they enabled fob access on the elevator. Between the constant stream of weirdo airbnb/”executive rental” hooligan and drunken morons constantly stumbling between their friend’s condo unit and the party room, every little bit of isolation helps.
Chris
at 10:02 am
Let’s be honest, here – security is a state of mind. If someone is determined to get in, no fob or security system is going to stop them.
Jackie
at 11:08 am
The added security can lower the condo’s building insurance costs. The management would have to run the numbers to see if the additional costs would be offset by the savings. In my building upgrading the 24 hour concierge to qualified security staff was offset by the decrease. I would think condos that allow airbnb type short term rentals have higher insurance costs.
Paul
at 11:09 am
as a board of directors member and having army experience I can tell you that security is only as good as your weakest link. In our 500 unit building we rely heavily on a GOOD concierge team. They are employed by us, not a company. We pay them more and we get a return in good, loyal service. in a condo you have to balance between a reasonable amount of freedom of movement and a total lock down state. You will always have extreme situations and the only real way to deal with it is humane vigilance. be aware of your building and surroundings and pay attention. Do not simply assume that “someone else will look after it”
Mike
at 4:47 pm
Not to split hairs but the “break” in “break and enter” doesn’t mean you need to actually break something. Its a colloquialism for unauthorised entry or its legal term “illegal entry” which technically you did do. Whether it would hold up in court is another matter. But again, I’m splitting hairs and do see your point.
As for security in a building, there’s always too much until something goes wrong, then there’s never enough until you start to feel like it’s way too much. Elevator FOB’s might seem like a bit of overkill but it makes it hard for a criminal to go floor-to-floor looking for unlocked doors.
bugeyedbrit
at 10:07 pm
Now……..if I could only figure out how to shoot videos sideways on my iPhone……
Turn the phone on its side…..
David Fleming
at 10:16 pm
@ bugeyedbrit
That was the joke… 🙂
AndrewB
at 8:37 am
My friend lives at Water Park or something like that at Queens Quay and York. It’s Fort Knox up in there. You cannot access a floor unless you buzz that person as a visitor and the elevator won’t let you go to any other floor.
Chroscklh
at 11:33 am
I thought Water Park is fictional world where Kevin Costner have the gills? Maybe is Dances with Manatee I think of. This guy -some body guard, where this guy when the Whitney take bath?!
J
at 1:18 pm
Gladstone buildings on Queen and Duffrin. No security, thieves breaking into lockers and cars, and homeless people sleeping in the lobby 🙁
david
at 5:32 pm
There’s no such thing as overkill security (If you live around Dundas & Yonge)
I used to work in downtown Toronto as a Condominium Concierge. Let me tell you, some condos are dying for fob-to-elevator features, and there are very expensive and challenging to implement. There’s a big misconception that if you have a Concierge in the building, there will be constant watch on every inch of the property. You’ll always have some tailgater or intruder finding a way to break in or get past Security. Please don’t assume the Condominium Concierges will always do dedicated Security because they’re not, they wear multiple hats, and they’re different from the Airport or Corporate Security, which primarily focus only on Security. Condo Concierge handles a lot of tasks; they handle your packages like the post office, book amenities like a hotel concierge, do daily building admin tasks (auditing) like a clerk, provide customer service sometimes like a call centre, deal with emergencies (flood, fire, health, elevator entrapment) like a first responder.
In the condo I used to work at, we constantly have vagrants breaking in every 2-3 weeks. They managed to break into people’s lockers and sometimes even units despite having deadbolts installed. The most common way they break in is by tailgating some residents or cars and sometimes posing as a food delivery person by pretending to buzz in. If they had elevators locked down, it would of prevent and deterred them from going further.
So having extra Security like elevator locks and cameras makes our job more manageable and keeps you safer when you add more security layers. I wouldn’t want to remove the lock from my door just for more convenience. Why take a chance when you can be proactively one step ahead of them?
Kos
at 2:37 pm
Like one of the comments say. Security is a state of mind. If Condo management really wanted to be secure with the fobs and keys, they would not charge so much and make it easier and cheaper for someone that actually owns the unit to get a extra set. I live in Toronto, and use services like Fobcopy.ca to get a extra fob or key because in most cases management will not give me a extra set. I always get a spares, because if I lose the originals, the condo charges so much to replace it. A lot of people rent there units as a investment and don’t want to give the original keys to the tenants. Makes no sense to me why management is so difficult.