I wouldn’t mind the photocopy, but why the hell does anyone surrender their license, to be locked away from them by a stranger?
I’ve never been asked this, although I tend not to look at the large complex type of apartments.
I am looking for a new place right now. If someone showing me an apartment asks me for my driver’s license, I’m very tempted to give it, and then ask for hers in return. All the same reasons apply, right? I really have no proof that she’s who she claims to be. She might have killed the real building manager just before I got there, and stashed the body in a back room. Maybe while we’re checking out the apartment, her accomplice is going to get my address and rob my place while they know I’m not there.
Hmm, now I’m tempted to start looking at apartment complexes just so I can try that.
@Broomstick
Essentially it’s a trust thing. I wouldn’t participate in that ritual if I was visiting Moscow, but I’m reasonably confident the people at ABC apartments around here are decent folks just earning a living.
Besides, I noted where she put it. If I had to go all Rambo on her 110 lb 22 year old ass then use her unconscious body as a battering ram to break down the glass door to the office to retrieve my license I would have.
Surprisingly enough, it all worked out just fine. She neither hijacked my identity nor did I go need to go all Rambo. America can be so *civilized *at times. Who’da thunk it?
I’m far more concerned about the many retailers of all sorts that take photocopies or scans of licenses. All those pieces of paper or data files are ripe for the staff to steal & sell to real no-kiddng identity thieves. That’s a much larger risk than some college kid having my DL locked in a desk for 20 minutes.
Really, I’ve never seen this, and I rented in a few large complexes in the DC area.
I think locking up the actual license helps them make the sales pitch to you. You can’t just walk away. You have to get that back. It puts them in a power position for this encounter.
While that sounds plausible, and is certainly part of the sales tactics at “Call for a free day vacation at XYZ timeshares”, it absolutely was not my experience at the several apartments which wanted to hold a license.
Whether we liked the place or not, the sales babe gave my card back before any discussion about doing a deal. Personal anecdote & all that …
:eek:
Wow. That’s probably the real answer.
ETA: or not …
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This makes no sense. The times I’ve been asked for a license as forfeit, it’s been to rent or borrow things - a costume at the Renaissance Fair, an audioguide at a museum, stuff like that. So it actually makes sense for them to hold the license to ensure that I’ll come back and not just pocket the item and run off. I’m not sure why someone on an apartment tour, who is going to be constantly supervised, would be suspected of not coming back.
I’ve never heard of this, but I guess it makes sense. It’d be a little disincentive to keep the bad guys from using an apartment tour to scout break-in routes.
It’s not a perfect system, but the goal isn’t to turn your building into Fort Knox- you just have to be a little more secure than the guy down the street.
Not sure I see how this would work. They come under the pretext of viewing the apartment, surrender their license, view the apartment, and retrieve their license. Now they can still pursue what ever nefarious plan they had in mind (like breaking into an empty apartment). How does holding their license during the tour discourage them from breaking in at a later time?
I agree; I don’t think it does. Mentally file it under stupid pet tricks.
Never heard of it, never had it happened to me. I don’t know how many apartments I’ve rented, but probably close to 10 or so. I’m pretty sure I’d be tempted to look elsewhere – it sends a message that the complex rents to bad people, like those grocery stores where you put a quarter deposit in to get a cart. Can’t stand people treating me like a criminal, or even a rapist – dog don’t hunt, so I’d look elsewhere. Can you imagine what kind of super/building manager this kind of paranoiac would likely turn out to be? I can – probably a Gladys Kravitz type.
That sounds plausible. It is similar to the car dealer tactic of asking for your car keys so they evaluate the trade in value of your car, when they really want to keep you from leaving while they work on you.
Frankly even a photocopy of my license sounds kind of iffy. The information could be used for identity theft. I don’t even put my birthday on Facebook.
Well, the time I was asked to hand over my license for an apartment tour, they had a model unit to show which was set up with a bunch of model stuff. Theoretically, I could have grabbed a plant or something out of the model unit and ran off with it if I didn’t have to come back for my license.
I have never seen nor heard of this. Neither has my sister, who has toured and lived in a lot more apartment complexes than I have.
Never heard of it either and I lived in apartments until 1989 when I bought a house.
It does sound like a heavy handed, hard-sales technique.
It takes less than 20 seconds to copy someones license. Heck you can put four or more one the copier at once and get them all on one sheet of paper. Proof of Id is all they need for security while showing an apartment.
A lot of staff at work have tiny usb scanners they use to copy id’s, business cards etc. Saves walking to the copier room.
Yeah, I live in Houston and toured an apartment complex once that took my license and locked it up. Very odd to me too. Like people have pointed out, keeping a photocopy on file for a while would be MUCH better than just taking your license and then giving it back to you after the tour.
Nah, my experience was the same as an above poster - as soon as they finished the tour they immediately gave back the license before any discussion of business. Plus this is a very popular complex which is usually at full capacity (with a wait list even) so they don’t really have any sales issues that would warrant such a tactic.
It seems to be more common among the big, professionally-managed complexes. Like I mentioned in my case there was a model unit full of things and I assumed it was collateral in case any of that was stolen or damaged. I’m curious whether others who do this also have model units.
The one of several owned by the same guy mentioned upthread does have model units. The other complexes don’t.
It discourages them from ever taking the tour to begin with. Why take a tour of a building that asks for your ID when there are any number of equally attractive targets that don’t? Even the off-hand chance that it makes it easier to trace something bad back to you makes it worth moving on.
Agan, the system doesn’t have to provide perfect security, it just has to a tiny bit better than the other guys. Thieves don’t get in the business because they want to work hard- they are going to choose the easiest target.