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Do you have global WiFi in your apartment/condo?
- Thread starter tzhu07
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But the cost of deploying the network and bandwidth for the entire building may not be as cheap as you think it might. I'm not saying it doesn't make sense but just that its not a free option
Well I supposed I'd need to know what the average tenant is paying per month to their ISP (which would also include those that don't pay for Internet access). Then multiply that by the number of units.
If that figure is less than the quoted monthly price of global WiFi, then I think our Board should go through with it.
I already wrote an email to the 3 board members to consider this possibility. I don't want to keep paying Comcast ~$55/month.
Well I supposed I'd need to know what the average tenant is paying per month to their ISP (which would also include those that don't pay for Internet access). Then multiply that by the number of units.
If that figure is less than the quoted monthly price of global WiFi, then I think our Board should go through with it.
I already wrote an email to the 3 board members to consider this possibility. I don't want to keep paying Comcast ~$55/month.
You'll also need to look into local administration of a router, and creating bandwidth allotments, otherwise someone acting in an independent rational self-interested manner will end up exploiting all the aggregate bandwidth, thus depriving others of their fair share. Aka Tragedy of the Commons.
If you (or the board) are not prepared to take on admin duties, and possibly resolving intramural disputes, then maybe having small independently organized cooperatives with voluntary membership and some form of self-governance, would be a better path. Governance seems easy until you have to do it.
We have a WiFi hotspot nearby that my apartment gets a signal for, but I have a package deal from my cable company for internet service.
Before I moved, I did look at an apartment that had global wifi for the whole complex, provided by the property management company. The cost of it was included in an annual amenities fee, which you could not opt out of paying.
Before I moved, I did look at an apartment that had global wifi for the whole complex, provided by the property management company. The cost of it was included in an annual amenities fee, which you could not opt out of paying.
I don't want to keep paying Comcast ~$55/month.
If your condo association did put in global wifi, they would pass the cost on to you in increased HOA fees.
I've stayed in hotels from Westin to La Quinta for work and I'd say about 5% of them have internet that works well enough to stream video at a decent rate. I would assume any building wide wifi in your condo complex would be similarly useless. I think you're best off splitting the bill with your neighbor(s).
Yup, I realize that. But my assumption with global wifi in my condo would be that the increase in HOA fees would be a lot less than $55/month per person.
All you need is one person doing something against the law for the whole condo to be screwed.
And installing and maintaining wifi equipment for a large area is more expensive then you would expect.
Is this really about "I want something but I don't want to pay (as much) for it"?
Buck up, OP. Are you looking to share a communal water bill and electric bill, as well?
If you don't want to pay $55 a month for internet, then stop doing it. Pay for a cheaper package or get your internet service elsewhere.
Buck up, OP. Are you looking to share a communal water bill and electric bill, as well?
If you don't want to pay $55 a month for internet, then stop doing it. Pay for a cheaper package or get your internet service elsewhere.
No, and I wouldn't want it. Even if my apartment did offer it, I'd still pay for my own internet service.
They'd add the costs into HOA fees and you probably wouldn't save much money anyways. Your basic DSL or cable line isn't going to offer enough bandwidth for everyone to share, so they're going to need some sort of pricey fiber service, and the equipment won't be cheap either. This isn't something you set up with a $40 Linksys router from Best Buy.
They'd add the costs into HOA fees and you probably wouldn't save much money anyways. Your basic DSL or cable line isn't going to offer enough bandwidth for everyone to share, so they're going to need some sort of pricey fiber service, and the equipment won't be cheap either. This isn't something you set up with a $40 Linksys router from Best Buy.
What's wrong with wanting something for less? Isn't that called getting a deal? It's the whole point of why I made this thread and inquired about global wifi.
Also, we actually do have communal water, but not electric.
And I can afford $55/month. Again, I'm just looking around for a better deal and global wifi is one of things I was researching.
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What?
Then places like libraries, hotels, Starbucks, etc, would all be vunerable to the same thing. And they're all up and running still.
Not all the time. I stayed at my share of resorts where the internet was down and they had to wait for someone to come in and fix it. It may not have been someone doing something they shouldn't have, or could have been an equipment failure but the router was up but no internet access occurred.
That brings another point, the cost of having someone being responsible for the uptime. Who's going to fix the network if it goes down. Many property managers have very little skill when it comes to networks and routers. They'd either have to contract out which can cost money or take a chance and manage it themselves.
I'm not saying its a bad idea but rather there are costs that will be passed on to each tenant. What happens if a tenant doesn't want it, either. For condos it needs to be voted on and the majority wins and the cost is passed on inside the condo fees.
I think you're assuming that a global wifi setup is cheaper then you paying for it and I'm not sure that's correct. I don't know.
you're paying 55 dollars for bandwidth for 1 person. The apartment complex has to purchase bandwidth sufficient for all tenants that's probably not going to be 55 dollars a month but a whole lot more. Divided up amongst the tenants may or may not be less then what you're paying but then we really don't know
The problem is that you want other tenants - whether they use it or not - to subsidize the cost for you.
The last condo I lived at made a deal with Time Warner for residents to get different bundles for a lower than normal rate. Each resident in the program had their own Internet connection but we saved about $30 a month over their normal fees for Internet, cable and phone.
I'd bet Comcast has a similar program. Bring it up at your HOA meeting.
I'd bet Comcast has a similar program. Bring it up at your HOA meeting.
Was that done in exchange for new HOA rules preventing people from putting up satellite dishes and blocking AT&T/Verizon to install fiber in the building? Because that's the only reason I could see Time Warner giving you guys a deal.
That's what I would want as it leaves the cable co in charge of maintaining the network and keeps everyone still on their own plan. As others have said, the cost of installing and maintaining a building-wide wifi would likely offer minimal cost savings with considerably worse performance and reliability.
No, there were no rules against using a dish or Fios, when it became available. There were rules on satellite dishes but people still had them. As part of the deal, TW wired the whole community, at least the few dozen units that weren't already wired.
Well you can't please everyone, so that's why if it ever gets brought up in a homeowners meeting, we all get to vote on it.
There will always be people living in condos who do not use all the amenities offered. From my personal perspective, of course I'm looking out for myself, just like all the other voters are going to vote in their best interest as well.
Honestly, if your biggest motivation is saving money, just switch your own plan. Virtually every company has inexpensive entry-level plans in the $20-30/month range. Sometimes they aren't advertised, and you may have to press the phone representative to let you change to it, but it's usually available.
Sure, it might be a slower speed than you have now, but the same applies to shared wifi, and you're not going to get building-wide Internet service worth using for less than that.
Sure, it might be a slower speed than you have now, but the same applies to shared wifi, and you're not going to get building-wide Internet service worth using for less than that.
to be far I you do not get much choice and who to get your broad band internet server from.
I have 2 choices for example, Crap cast or no internet the 55 a month is almost their cheapest package now as well. The internet companies in many places get a monopoly on the area. If you are lucky you get 2 choices.