Remote Video Monitoring: The Smarter Way to Secure Your Entire Portfolio

Key Takeaways

• Remote Video Monitoring (RVM) combines AI and trained operators to monitor your security cameras 24/7, enabling immediate intervention and preventing incidents from escalating. Key benefits include proactive threat detection, rapid response, and loss prevention.
• National property crime is down 8.1% in 2024, but only 30.5% of victims report incidents.
• Security guard turnover rates range from 100% to 300%, creating significant challenges for hiring and retention.

A typical break-in lasts about 8 to 12 minutes, but the financial impact can persist for months. Consequences include lease terminations and negative online reviews that deter prospective tenants. Ongoing repair and replacement costs also affect your net operating income.

When an asset or a portfolio manager asks, "Is our security actually working?", it is fundamentally a financial question, with safety as a key consideration.

Traditionally, the answer involved a guard at the gate, a CCTV system, and an alarm contract.

However, these measures often fail to provide effective protection during critical incidents, such as late-night perimeter breaches.

Guards may be unavailable or unfamiliar with the property. Cameras often only provide footage for review after an incident has occurred. Frequent false positives have led police to respond only to verified threats.

Remote video monitoring addresses these gaps. Apartment communities should understand the operation before their next contract renewal.

What Is Remote Video Monitoring?

Remote video monitoring is a 24/7 security service that uses AI and trained operators to monitor your existing cameras, detect threats in real time, and intervene before incidents escalate.

The core process consists of four main components:

1. Your existing cameras stream video feeds to an off-site operations center.
2. AI continuously analyzes every event, using computer vision to filter out routine activity (residents, leasing staff, animals, weather) and flag genuine threats (perimeter breaches, loitering, suspicious vehicle behavior).
3. A human operator verifies alerts within seconds and determines the appropriate response for the property to act upon. For example, Hakimo’s median response time is 6 seconds from AI flag to operator review.
4. The operator intervenes, such as live manual talk-downs through speakers, dispatching guards, or initiating a verified 911 call with suspect descriptions and live video evidence.

You’ll hear two terms used a lot in this space, and they’re worth keeping straight. Remote guarding is the service itself: security professionals watch your property from an off-site operations center and intervene in real time in place of an on-site guard.

Human-in-the-loop monitoring describes how work is split between AI and people. The AI handles continuous detection, while the human handles verification and judgment.

Why Your Current Security Setup Is Probably Failing You

Many multifamily properties continue to invest in traditional and outdated security models, reducing the effectiveness and value of these expenditures.

First, guard retention is increasingly difficult. Industry turnover rates range from 100% to 300% annually, making consistent staffing a challenge. With median wages at $38,370, maintaining retention is financially unsustainable.

Frequent false positives have led police to deprioritize them. Most activations are false, and verified-response policies in major cities mean unconfirmed alerts are often ignored.

Cameras without proactive monitoring only provide footage after an incident. By the time incidents are reviewed, financial losses and negative reviews have already occurred.

These traditional security measures are no longer as effective as they once were.

What Multifamily Operators Are Actually Up Against

Security challenges for apartment communities have evolved beyond the capabilities of traditional systems.

A decade ago, security planning focused on preventing dramatic events such as break-ins, assaults, or high-value burglaries.

Currently, most operators face challenges related to the volume of incidents and limited visibility.

Common issues include vehicle break-ins in parking lots, trespassers in amenity spaces, package theft in mail rooms, trash dumping at the back of the property, and loitering in breezeways.

While these incidents may not attract media attention, they significantly affect resident satisfaction and online reputation.

The package issue alone tells the story. With residents averaging roughly 10 deliveries per unit per month, a 200-unit community sees tens of thousands of packages flow through its common areas each year. SafeWise estimates 104 million packages were stolen in the U.S. in 2025, and the multifamily share of that is significant.

The direct losses are only part of the issue. Greater long-term impacts often appear as lease non-renewals and declining online ratings, which influence future leasing prospects.

How Remote Video Monitoring Protects Your Property

Remote video monitoring consists of four key components, each addressing gaps left by traditional security methods:

• Continuous monitoring: AI models trained on millions of hours of footage learn what is normal at your property. The system ignores residents walking dogs, leasing staff entering the office, and raccoons in the dumpster area. It flags what doesn't belong, like a person scaling the perimeter fence, a stranger testing car door handles, or a vehicle parked in the loading zone for an hour.

• Human verification in seconds: The human-in-the-loop model enables rapid response. Hakimo's median operator response time is 6 seconds from AI alert to human review, a level of consistency unmatched by traditional guard teams, especially during overnight hours, when a property owner doesn't want to be disturbed.

• Live Talkdowns: Live, manual talk-downs, such as "You in the white hoodie near building C, you're being recorded, and police are en route," deter most intruders before any damage occurs.

• Verified call to police: Because the operator is monitoring live and can describe the suspect, location, and activity, the call is marked as Priority 1. Verified incidents receive faster response times than unverified alarms.

What to Look for in a Remote Video Monitoring Partner?

Many remote video monitoring providers exist, but not all AI security solutions offer the same capabilities. Property owners should consider the following questions:

- Does it work with the cameras you already own?

If a vendor requires replacing your existing CCTV, this can result in significant capital expenditures before any security improvements are realized. The ideal partner integrates with ONVIF-compliant cameras and major VMS and access control systems. For example, Hakimo integrates with over 50+ industry-standard platforms.

- Is it actually proactive, or just smarter recording?

An effective RVM platform should offer automated talk-downs rather than delayed alerts. Request the median response time; if a vendor cannot provide this information promptly, their solution may not be designed for prevention.

- Is there a human in the loop?

AI alone may generate inaccurate alerts depending on its training. Effective systems combine computer vision with trained operators who provide context and make informed decisions. This is Hakimo’s model: AI for speed, humans for context.

- What's the operator's proven coverage?

The number of hours monitored is a key metric that indicates whether the vendor has deployed the system at scale or only in demonstration settings.

How Hakimo Fits In

Hakimo was built specifically for this model. The platform connects to your existing ONVIF-compliant cameras, applies AI-driven detection, and routes flagged events to trained operators who verify and intervene, typically through a live talk-down before any incident escalates.

Property management is one of Hakimo's core verticals. Operators such as Stockdale Management, Sares Regis, and Tangram Group use the platform to protect perimeters, parking lots, mail rooms, and amenity spaces across their portfolios. Customers report annual savings of $125,000 to $750,000 per property compared to traditional guard contracts.

The value proposition is straightforward: enhance your existing cameras with advanced monitoring to address incidents in real time and prevent escalation into lease terminations or negative reviews.

Where This Is Going

The economics of security have changed. In the early 2010s, camera monitoring was inefficient and impractical. In 2026, remote monitoring has become faster, more accurate, and significantly more cost-effective than human-based alternatives.

With ongoing guard shortages and reduced police response to unverified alarms, the need for multifamily operators to adopt proactive security solutions is increasingly clear.

You do not need to be a security expert to recognize these trends. Reviewing the data and taking action is essential. Portfolios that prioritize prevention over reaction will better protect net operating income in the coming years.

If your current security relies on guards and post-incident recordings, it is time to consider an upgrade. More effective solutions are already being used at competing properties.