hi all , is it safe to rent a shophouse in phnom phen?

most of the apartments in the 250-400 usd range i have seen in dauhn phen or makara 7 or riverfront online were shophouses , so i would like to know do these apartments have 24/7 security?

did any one here had any bad experience while living in a shophouse in those areas in phnom phen?

i ask this cause i also read online that poor cambodians steal like crazy.

I would hardly say that poor Cambodians steal like crazy. They do not in my experience steal more than poor people anywhere else, maybe even less. And most thieves aren't especially poor....just greedy.

There will not be a formal security system in a shophouse other than good locks on the outside door to the stairway. But if you are renting an upper floor, which is usually the case, the presence of the family on the ground floor can contribute greatly to your security. I was on the second floor of one of these places some years back, got on very well with the family running a rubber stamp business on the ground floor and they were a big help (I even got address stamps made or free). I felt quite secure there, probably more than I would have been in a house.

So my advice would be to check out the ground floor folk and see if they seem friendly and decent (most people running small businesses are). Also, avoid taking the very top floor where it may be possible to get in through your ceiling (I find it hard to envision but my Khmer friends swear it can happen). And check out the locks to the roof area as well as the quality of the lock to the stairway from the street. If all that seems OK, go for it and take the time to cultivate relations with your downstairs neighbors, it will pay off.

There are plenty of apartments in that area in that budget range which aren't shophouses but rather fairly unattractive apartment blocks with shops below. (There is a difference). By and large, security is a huge steel door which padlocks on the inside (these can be a pain in the backside late at night when slightly drunk but are otherwise very secure) and bars on all windows, plus (with just a little luck) razor wire around the balcony (if you have one).

Yes, burglary is rife in Cambodia. Yes, it can be avoided. I've lived in both Siem Reap and Phnom Penh without incident all my time here. Be sensible and try to get on with your neighbours who like thieves about as much as you do and who have far more to lose if the apartments start getting ransacked.

thank you for your'e informative answers.