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Okay, so my wife and I have lived in an apartment in Dallas for the past 2 years. I received a notice from the Apartment Management today that the City of Dallas Fire Marshall will be inspecting our complex in a little over a week and will be entering apartments looking for "violations" (faulty smoke detectors, blocked windows in bedrooms, broken/missing faceplates, extension cords, cords running across walkways, etc.) If a violation is found our complex says we will be fined (I dont know if this is from the Fire Marshall or the complex).

Here are my concerns:

1) I dont like ANYONE in my home while I am not there, especially since I own firearms (along with a lot of other valuables) (I know that maintenence comes in periodically, but I am usually home when they do)
2) I dont get the feeling that my apartment complex is "firearm friendly" I dont really want the management, maintainence men, or the fire marshall seeing my gun safe and getting any ideas.
3) I dont like the idea of someone coming into my home to "search" for "violations" without a warrant.

So, my question is, do I have to consent to this search if it is required by management? There is a line in my lease that I believe puts me behind the eight-ball:

WHEN WE MAY ENTER:
...
or showing
apartment to government representatives for the limited purpose
of determining housing and fire ordinance compliance,

I have already decided that I am moving out when my lease ends in October, but do you guys think that there is anything I can do to keep them out? Or should I just throw a sheet over the safe and put some decorations on top (like my wife suggested).

Opinions appreciated...

The apartment complex has the right (by your lease agreement) to enter your unit for fire inspection. The complex is responsible for providing a safe living environment for all the residents, and can be held liable if there was a fire and the units were not up to code (even by fault of the residents).

Put a bed sheet over the safe, at least they won't see it and will just think you're weird.

If it's in your lease, and you signed it, It looks like you have to comply.

Do the sheet thing, use something like 'My Little Pony' sheets or something. Noone would ever think there was a gun safe under that!

I agree with the others. If there is an inspection clause contained in the lease the management company has the right to inspect your premises. I've seen many, many lease agreements when I was a real estate broker, and every lease I saw contained that clause. Sorry to say, you must abide by the terms of the lease.

It's the Fire Marshal who informs the property owner that they are going to conduct an inspection of the premises in almost all cases. Sometimes advance warning is given, a day or so in advance. Quite often(this is especially true for commercial buildings) they just show up unannounced.

Is your safe in your closet? If so, there's a slight chance they may not even inspect the closet......but that's no guarantee by any means. I vote for putting a sheet over it, and try to decorate it to make it appear it's a piece of furniture.

Forget about building equity and the tax breaks. Privacy is the best reason to own a home.

roberts wrote:Forget about building equity and the tax breaks. Privacy is the best reason to own a home.

I totally agree.

Roberts---We personally would LOVE to own a home, but since we are both in Graduate School, that really is not a possibility right now. Hopefully our education one day will pay off and allow us to afford to buy a home! But we are both in healthcare, so if Obama gets a hold of us, we may end up not having two dimes to rub together, especially as we start to pay back student loans!

D.R. that day of home ownership will come, I assure you. It's just a matter of time.

Another option is a duplex, or renting a home. Are those viable options? If so, it's something worth considering, IMO.

Joe-That's what I'm doing in October! The owner of that house is very gun friendly considering he taught me how to shoot and bought me my very first firearm! Gotta love Grandparents!

Excellent!! Congrats! It will give you all the freedom you deserve! And October is just around the corner.

And yes, we grandparents ARE a good invention!

And you have a built in shooting partner when you all go to the range! Good show.

D.R.,

You'll be fine...Fire Marshalls are doing you a service...They are looking at everything to mitigate potential and obvious causes for fire in your complex...Apartment fires were some of the worst things I ever had to do in my district...And anything that can be identified and corrected to safeguard the entire complex is better for everyone...

Now, considering your concerns for your privacy...Don't sweat it...They are not looking for guns...That doesn't mean I would leave things out for people to discover if you are not there...I don't believe you will, since you have the gunsafe available...I wouldn't even bother covering the thing up with a sheet...Even though that is a cute idea, it won't matter...

Just make sure everything is locked up and secure...The leasing agent, or even manager of the complex, is probably not that sharp, or interested, in knowing exactly what that big piece of furniture is, wherever you placed it in the apartment...

So you have a big "safe" in there...You have a lot of valuables you wish to be secured, and what is in there is none of anyones business, lots of people buy gunsafes because of their size, and not necessarily use them to secure guns...

(just a random thought/comment there)

stevie_d_64 wrote:D.R.,

You'll be fine...Fire Marshalls are doing you a service...They are looking at everything to mitigate potential and obvious causes for fire in your complex...Apartment fires were some of the worst things I ever had to do in my district...And anything that can be identified and corrected to safeguard the entire complex is better for everyone...

Now, considering your concerns for your privacy...Don't sweat it...They are not looking for guns...That doesn't mean I would leave things out for people to discover if you are not there...I don't believe you will, since you have the gunsafe available...I wouldn't even bother covering the thing up with a sheet...Even though that is a cute idea, it won't matter...

Just make sure everything is locked up and secure...The leasing agent, or even manager of the complex, is probably not that sharp, or interested, in knowing exactly what that big piece of furniture is, wherever you placed it in the apartment...

So you have a big "safe" in there...You have a lot of valuables you wish to be secured, and what is in there is none of anyones business, lots of people buy gunsafes because of their size, and not necessarily use them to secure guns...

(just a random thought/comment there)

I'm with Stevie, and just another random thought, the sheet might tempt them to look under it, causing them to wonder what you have to hide. I would leave the safe uncovered.

Stevie...please check your Messages...Thanks!

I'm a fire fighter in a suburb of Dallas, although not in the fire marshals office. I understand how you feel, but I would say don't worry. The fire inspector is looking to make sure the alarm systems have not been tampered with and are in your apt. They are also looking to make sure there are no unauthorized openings in the walls and ceilings that have not been repaired by the management.

As far as what is in your apartment, they (we) don't really look. They will notice if there are any meth lab equipment there, or any hibachi grills in the living room. Other than that, they won't really care about your personal belongings.

Mr Fixit

I'm sure they've found lots worse things than evidence of gun ownership.