By Brian Seiffert and Joseph Rodriguez

Prospective owners may not have a crystal ball to avoid bad investments, but they can surround themselves with industry leaders and professional consultants to give them a good idea of what to expect. Today, it’s more important than ever to conduct a pre-acquisition technology infrastructure survey that runs a figurative fine-tooth comb over a community’s telecom components. It’s simply not enough to identify current providers and their service offering, as those services may not be competitive with advanced services being deployed at competing communities nearby.

A RealtyCom pre-acquisition site survey is conducted prior to a client’s purchase of an existing multi-family property. The survey includes inspection of existing structured cabling (i.e. homeruns to units, wiring between buildings, wiring within common areas, etc.), photo/video documentation of existing space and equipment within telecom closets ( MDF, IDF, AV, back of house, etc), and all conduit/sleeves/pathways. During the structured cabling portion of the survey, our field engineer identifies cable types in use and provides insight on feasibility of potential post wiring solutions. This information is gathered by:

  • Identifying how difficult upgrading/placing new cables will be (use of attic space to retrofit IDF to unit homerun wiring)
  • Noting whether the space within the MDF/IDF meets the requirements for providers current network systems (backboard space/power)
  • Identifying if, in a garden style project, there are pathways between buildings where a service provider or property owner could install its network backbone throughout the property. If the current cabling is “direct bury”, our field engineer looks for what can be easily overhauled or if upgrading will be a major construction undertaking.

The survey is then delivered to the client as a comprehensive, detailed report which includes:

  • summary of investigation and findings
  • break-out of each topic and a review of each building’s cabling/pathways
  • Link to a shared folder containing all site visit photos, labeled and categorized
  • summary of any work that may need to be completed to bring the property up to current network/cabling standards as well as an overview of the risks and potential investment required.

The pre-acquisition survey complements RealtyCom’s due diligence report on existing telecom contracts, so that our clients acquisition teams have  a comprehensive view of current telecom opportunities, services and infrastructure. Combined, the reports also provide meaningful insights into the cost/feasibility of telecom upgrades necessary to achieve the perspective owner’s vision for the property. This may include property wide Wi-Fi, integration of popular IoT applications/devices and integration with property systems (e.g., Access Control, AV, etc.), to name a few.

It makes sense to know the telecom current levels of service and the possibilities for future capabilities before purchase.  We’d love the opportunity to review your next prospective property and provide the basis for a wise decision. Call us today or email info@realtycompartners.com to learn more!