Oh well... don't want to stay parked at the top!

It's not the be-all, but cameras have proven quite effective in the building I live. It feeds into the superintendent's apartment and is stored digitally in some secret location. We've not had anything stolen but the footage did catch a potential vandal. Alarms go largely ignored here in NYC by everyone except the police.

We have several doormen which definitely helps but if that overhead is too much, video is a fine deterrent and if anything happens, there's images of it. My two cents.

Thanks, westvillager. I was planning to add a camera as a deterrent. However, we do not have a doorman, so my impression is that we'll have a nice photo of any burglar, but still be missing our furniture. What I would like would be some sort of lock or device. I may walk through some hotels and see if I get any inspiration.

Built-in furniture. Have someone paint something nice directly on the walls rather than hanging pictures.

I answered regarding security but it's mostly about the taking. Your first post was clear. We also know people continue to steal from places like banks and department stores that obviously have cameras. The pic is crucial for police acting quickly, increasing recovery chances.

An empty lobby is the extreme, last choice. I think ideas from hotel lobbies is a great one. I suspect the furniture that can be will be too bulky to steal quickly or secured in place. A kind of mural instead of hanging art is also good for the same reason. I was thinking about how office buildings and shopping malls handle the issue. Many of them secure frames to the wall for liability reasons. (Won't fall in an earthquake or if someone bumps into it.) Benches and trash cans tend to be extremely heavy or chained to the floor -- sometimes hidden, sometimes not.

i think you should make a list of all imp or common things of your house and sign a agrement with these list that when you leave you should make sure that things should be there in working condition(not damaged),this will prevent loss or theft

try to make a list of all important items in your apartment for rent...

I call the police to tag the items in the common area with serial numbers - that is if they do that in your area. I would add security cameras to the common area and have the recording done in a lockbox or area that they cannot easily get too.