Virtual doormen a boon to developers

NEW YORK, July 19 (UPI) -- Companies offering so-called virtual doormen services are helping developers in New York and elsewhere save on staffing costs, a company executive says.

Colin Foster, sales and marketing vice president for Virtual Doorman, said his New York company offers developers the chance to avoid hiring an on-site doorman for their properties, the New York Post reported Sunday.

Instead, those developers can hire Virtual Doorman or similar companies to watch their properties' doors and buzz in guests from distant locations.

Virtual Doormen staffers make $15 an hour and can videotape all property guests while collecting names from all unexpected site visitors.

"An enormous amount of buildings between four and 100 units will select virtual doormen instead of a live one, and they do this because of cost," Foster said.

Developers told the Post an average remote-access doorman system providing non-stop coverage costs nearly $24,000 a year compared with the $180,000 a year it would cost to keep doormen on duty 24 hours a day.