AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

No internet is available there. I barely have cell service. For your information, I did have a good lease document, and I did have good renters at the start. It's a long, sad story. Anyway, I love my house, and I'd like to somehow protect it.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

Brand names?

Cheese

Invest in a few signs that say “Beware of rattlesnakes.” 😀

RodeoMan Loc: St Joseph, Missouri

She asked a serious question about protecting the home that has been in her family for over180 years and you advise her to put some "Beware of Rattlesnakes" signs. Seriously. When other people with problems ask for your suggestions, are you always this thoughtful and considerate with your advice.

Wanda Krack Loc: Tennessee, USA

About 5 or 6 years ago, my son purchased a solar-powered trail cam for me to track animals that disturb areas from time to time. I have used it inconsistently over the years and discovered that it does a good job both day and night, but has a fairly narrow sharp view of the subjects. My advice would be to place it carefully where you know you will be getting the right pictures, because it takes a picture of anything within the viewing area that moves, leaves, and foliage too. The company name on the camera seems to be SOLAR. The other word on the object is SPYPOINT. It's easy to use, requires a card, and now after using the solar battery for about 3-4 years, I am using replaceable regular batteries, but it still works. You do have to change the SD card out when it gets full, but if you place a 32GB card, those will hold a LOT of tiny images. The cost of this small trail-cam was not unreasonable, but someone would need to check it from time to time, and you can set it up for a variety of things, from individual images to videos. It has been useful for me, but I use it where I live, so can move it around, and perform maintence as needed.

ELNikkor

I have a Tactacam Reveal Cellular trail cam that will alert my cell phone whenever it is triggered, showing me what it is seeing. Haven't set it up yet, as it has to be tethered to a provider, but, in theory, you will see the vandals in real time, be recording them, and you can call 911. Police response time then becomes the factor. There are probably similar units out there, I got mine at Dick's.

HOHIMER

In my opinion, cameras are not the solution to your problem.
If the renters caused the vandalism then you know who they are. Prosecute them.
If the property is located in an isolated area (No neighbors and out in the country) and is not occupied, it will be almost impossible to prevent vandalism.
Notifying the local authorities, from 1000 miles away, that you are observing vandalism or trespassing via a camera will get little or no immediate reaction on the part of the local authorities.(IMO)
Showing the police or sheriff a video, after the vandalism has occurred, will not trigger them to do very much.(IMO)- And even if they do catch the perpetrator, the damage has been done to the cherished artifact and no amount of compensation or repair will restore its lost value in your mind.

Installing cameras to ‘spy’ on renters is not acceptable.

Your best bet is to get some reliable person/relative to occupy the property as caretaker, with the prevision they will not be required to pay rent as long as they maintain the property in its original form and condition. It might be tough to find a suitable candidate if there is no electric or water. You may need to pay someone to stay on the property. If you go this route, make sure you get them to sign a legally binding contract with stipulated terms. Otherwise, they might evoke ‘squatter’s’ rights, after a period of time, and gain ownership of the property.

chuckbear

We use Reolink Cameras when we are not at our property. The ones we have run off cellular networks and have small solar panels to keep them charged. We can get alerts via email whenever to cameras are triggered and can access the cameras anywhere from their app on our phones, tablets and computers. Chuck

spaceylb Loc: Long Beach, N.Y.

Trail Cams...

BebuLamar

I am surprised that you can own a property and just leave it there without having to take care of it often. When I moved the price of houses went down so much that I didn't want to sell the old house. I can easily afford to own both houses but I think it's impossible to just leave the house there without having to take care of it often. To the very least I would have to mow the lawn every 2 weeks or so.

coolhanduke Loc: Redondo Beach, CA

There are a number of them on Amazon that have solar panels to charge them. However regardless, you will need to have WiFi access.
Just saw one from Roku that has a solar panel.
Also as someone suggested, look into trail cams.

Retina Loc: Near Charleston,SC

There are solar powered, or long life battery powered trail cameras. Some use cellular data if phone service is available. If not, they can make long recordings. Thieves are good at finding them, so hide them well.

Retina Loc: Near Charleston,SC

Agreed. My second home was burglarized recently. The thief was caught driving my car the same day with a lot of things in it. He was not charged because I had no video.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

Thanks for the info! I'll look into it.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

Thanks for the info.