Security company in Fourways for estates and complexes

Fourways takes its name from the four-way stop where William Nicol Drive and Witkoppen Road once met. The land was a family farm that was sold off piece by piece, and in the decades since it has become one of the fastest-developing commercial and residential areas in northern Johannesburg. Much of that growth has been in estates and complexes: some built around golf courses, others around parks and family living, alongside townhouse complexes and apartment blocks in suburbs such as Lonehill. Fourways Mall and Montecasino make it a busy commercial node as well.

That shapes how security works here. In a suburb of freestanding homes, each owner looks after their own wall and gate. In an estate or complex, the perimeter and the gate are shared, run by an HOA or body corporate, and your own home sits inside it. Both levels need attention, and they need different things.

Trustees are responsible for a gate they can't stand at themselves. So a security quote for an estate or complex should be easy to check, not only competitive. When you compare providers, including us, ask each one to put these in writing:

We quote estate security after a site visit, and our proposal is in writing so the trustees can compare it line by line. Pieter or Marco stays your contact, not a call centre.

An estate wall can be high and well fenced, but every resident, visitor, delivery and contractor comes through the gate. That makes the gate the part of an estate's security that needs the most care. Three things make the biggest difference:

• Clear entrance cameras. Cameras placed to capture number plates and faces, with lighting that works at night, and someone checking they're still recording.
• Biometric access. Fingerprint access at pedestrian gates and staff entrances can't be lent to someone else like a remote or a card, and it leaves a record of who came in and when.
• Vetted staff. Criminal background checks on domestic workers, gardeners and regular contractors before they're given access. The person being checked has to consent, and we'll explain what that involves.

Living behind an estate gate doesn't mean anyone is watching your front door. The estate's guards and cameras cover the perimeter and the entrance. What happens inside your own walls is up to you.

For residents we usually suggest an alarm with outdoor beams on the garden and patio, linked to 24-hour off-site monitoring, a camera at your front door and driveway, and a garage door motor so you can drive straight in. The same applies in a townhouse complex: the body corporate's wall and gate are shared, but your unit is yours to secure. Check your estate's or complex's rules first, as some limit where cameras and beams can be mounted. If you're away often, monitoring means someone is keeping an eye on the house while it's empty.