Federal rules published by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) give residents of apartment communities the right to install satellite dishes at an apartment community, subject to FCC limits. Many landlords are still unsure of exactly what the rules permit residents to do and what the rights of the landlord are. While the law permits residents to install satellite dishes, there are restrictions. Also, housing owners are allowed to impose reasonable restrictions relating to the installation.
Residents may install one satellite dish that is no more than one meter (39 inches) in diameter. The dish may be located in any of the following areas:
- Inside the leased dwelling; or
- In an area outside the dwelling such as a balcony, patio, yard, etc., as long as the resident has exclusive use of that space in the lease.
Installation should not be allowed in any parking areas, roof, exterior wall, window, windowsill, fence or common area, or any area that is available for use by other residents. The dish or antenna should not protrude beyond the vertical and horizontal space that is leased to the resident for their exclusive use.
Safety Issues
A Landlord should require the following relative to the installation of the dishes/antennas:
- Must comply with all applicable ordinances and laws;
- May not interfere with the property’s cable, telephone or electrical systems or those of neighboring properties;
- May not be connected to the property’s telecommunications systems;
- May not be connected to the property’s electrical system except by plugging into a 110 volt duplex receptacle;
- If placed in an outside area, the dish or antenna must be safely secured by one of two methods:
- Securely attached to a portable, heavy object such as a small slab of concrete; or
- Clamped to part of the building exterior that lies within the resident’s leased premises (e.g., balcony or patio railing).
A landlord has the right to approve the installation and should require that a qualified person or company approved by the landlord do the installation. An installer provided by the seller of the dish/antenna should be presumed to be qualified.
Signal Transmission
Residents should not be permitted to drill holes through outside walls, door jams, windowsills, etc. The signals received by the dish/antenna should be transmitted to the interior of the dwelling only by one of the following four methods:
- Running a “flat” cable under a door jam or window sill in a manner that does not physically alter the premises and does not interfere with proper operation of the door or window;
- Running a traditional or flat cable through a pre-existing hole in the wall (that will not need to be enlarged to accommodate the cable);
- Connecting cables through a window pane, similar to how an external car antenna for a cell phone can be connected to inside wiring by a device glued to either side of the window – without drilling a hole through the window; or
- Wireless transmission of the signal from the dish/antenna to a device inside the dwelling.
Removal & Damages
Residents should be required to remove the satellite dish or antenna and all related equipment when they move out of the apartment. The lease should also require that the resident pay for any damages and for the cost of repairs or repainting caused by negligence, carelessness, accident or abuse. Also, if the dish/antenna is installed at a height that could result in injury to others if it fell, landlords may require liability insurance to protect against claims of personal injury and property damage.
Security Deposit
A security deposit (in addition to the regular security deposit) may be required to protect the landlord against possible repair costs, damages or tenant failure to remove the dish/antenna and related equipment at move out.