An amenity of necessity A recent U.S. survey reveals that gated access and app-controlled door locks are popular ‘good to haves’ among apartment renters, writes Mark Tarallo in ASIS International’s Security Management magazine. Is security trendy? It may seem an odd question. But consider the current residential apartment sector, where upscale rental buildings are competing for new tenants by offering increasingly luxurious amenities such as pet daycare, wine cellars, and movie screening rooms. A recent survey asked apartment renters which amenity they most desired, and amid all these intriguing choices the number one answer was…a security-based amenity.
“Gated access” was the most frequently cited amenity in the survey, chosen by 35 percent of respondents. It beat out such features as hardwood floors, rooftop terraces, and coffee shops. “App-controlled door locks” also made the top 10, chosen by 25 percent of respondents. The survey of 2,000 renters
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was conducted by RentPath and Egg Strategy in 2017 and 2018, and the results were released in October 2018. Angie Amon, director of research at RentPath, says the survey reflects an unshakable reality in the apartment world: “It’s universal, the desire to feel safe and secure.” As evidence, she cites a renter focus group she attended, in which people were asked about factors involved in moving to a new apartment building. “Every single person talked about security and safety,” she says. She adds that, in particular, the popularity of gated access is also being driven by more favourable economics. Currently, gated access communities “don’t necessarily have to be quote unquote luxury” developments–there’s a growing number of more moderately priced gated communities, which in some regions of the country are becoming popular. “They’re building them as fast as they can,” Amon says.
Apartment security expert Chris E. McGoey, CPP, says security has traditionally been one of the three most important factors when it comes to renting an apartment, along with location and price. McGoey, who conducts apartment security assessments as a consultant, has been a member of ASIS for nearly 40 years. Moreover, gates in particular still have a powerful psychological effect for many, McGoey explains. Their prominence at the front of properties conveys a sense of safety to many residents. “If it can reduce the amount of traffic, it will filter out a percentage of people who would come in and take advantage of the property,” he says. And although an apartment community secured by a gate is “not Fort Knox,” McGoey adds that the gate still has the power to deter some potential criminals—if only as a psychological factor. Another possible consideration driving the increased popularity of gated access apartment communities is demographic, says Mark Berger, president of the Securitech Group and a member of the ASIS Physical Security Council. The gated access concept is an ancient one, Berger explains: “It all goes back to castles and moats and drawbridges.” But many of those now interested in renting are part of the Millennial generation and Generation X, often raised in controlled, structured environments, compared with older generations more likely to run wild through the neighbourhood as children. “The playdate generation has come of age,” he says, adding that many of these young renters derive a certain comfort from restrictions on who can walk into their environment. Still, McGoey says that in one sense the growing popularity of gated communities is a double-edged sword.
August / September 2019
