by HomeAdvisor
Here’s the good news: mid-June statistics for 2015 show a drop in
home theft. The bad news? There are still plenty of criminals interested
in breaking into your home. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t make
it tough for them! The first step in home crime prevention is to
eliminate opportunity, and it’s up to you to cut those chances.
Though many people only worry about nighttime security, most
burglaries actually occur during daylight hours when most people are at
work, school, or running errands. It’s important to take precautions
during the day, at night, and any time you leave the house to ensure
your home stays secure.
When it comes to protecting your family and your belongings, you
can’t be too careful, and there are plenty of ways you can protect your
home from invasion or burglary. This guide will discuss prevention steps
to take both inside and outside your home, and even ways to keep your
home protected while you’re away on vacation. Don’t let your home fall
prey to a thief: make it a waste of his time and resources!
Protecting Your Home From the Outside
Walk around the exterior of your home and scout out its weaknesses. The
best way to protect your home from the outside is to survey it with the
eyes of a burglar. If you can easily tell that a window could be pried
open, a thief will definitely be able to come to the same conclusion.
You can even contact your local police department and they’ll provide a
courtesy home assessment that can help you identify your home’s weak
spots.
While you’re checking for vulnerable spots, take note of any
expensive electronics, art, or furniture that is easily spotted through
windows. You don’t have to redecorate your entire home to keep expensive
items out of sight, but it doesn’t hurt to make small adjustments where
you can. No need to tempt thieves any more than you have to!
Keep shrubbery around entrances and walkways trimmed. The
last thing you want is to make it easier for a thief to hide when
attempting to break in, so eliminate his options for hiding spots. He
may only need a few minutes of cover to make his entry but with no place
to hide while doing it, he’s less likely to even try. You could even
plant thorny shrubs by your windows to make it not only difficult to
break in, but painful!
Build a fence. If you don’t have one
already, a fence can be an excellent way to keep unwanted visitors off
your property. Open chain-link or ornamental metal fencing tend to be
preferable and are ideally secured into concrete to prevent lifting.
Solid fences can be easier to climb and offer thieves a place to hide,
though some homeowners prefer them for privacy and noise reduction. You
can better secure them by having sharp pointed tops or, if you don’t
mind rough barbed wire fencing.
Stow expensive items like grills, cars, and bikes in the garage. Though
it may seem like a hassle to roll out the grill for every barbecue,
leaving it out makes it an easy target for thieves. They don’t even have
to enter your home to grab it, and if it’s got wheels it can be a
breeze to sneak away with. If your area only offers street parking,
always lock your car and be sure to park in a well-lit area.
Use curtains on garage and basement windows. Chances
are these areas don’t need the sunlight, so put up curtains or blinds
for privacy and protection. Stowing your outdoor valuables only does so
much good if they’re constantly on display!
Install motion sensor lighting around your home, especially at entrances. Shine
a spotlight on a potential intruder before he can even touch your doors
or windows by adding extra lighting with motion detectors at entrances
and especially dark corners of your home. If you live in an apartment,
ask your landlord to install sufficient lighting in walkways and halls
to eliminate dark corners.
Get to know your neighbors. Crime tends to
be lower in tight-knit communities because neighbors are more likely to
look out for each other and can easily spot a stranger. Your neighbors
can be one of your best assets in home crime prevention because they
offer extra eyes and an outside perspective. Plus if they have a
different work or school schedule from yours, they might be around
during the day when you’re away and can alert you to any suspicious
activity that may occur in your absence.
Keep your yard free of toys, tools, and ladders. A
yard littered with toys signals to a thief that the house may be filled
with equally interesting entertainment, like game consoles, tablets, or
laptops. A ladder or toolbox left out even briefly for an afternoon can
give an opportunistic thief help in gaining access to your house.
Talk to your neighborhood association about increased lighting on your street. Burglars
often case an entire street or neighborhood to determine if it’s a good
target, but often prefer to do so in the dark of night. A well-lit
neighborhood will likely deter him from your area, or at the very least
make it very difficult for him to slip away undetected.
Prune trees around two-story homes. A
determined crook may scale a tree and break into an upstairs window if
branches are long enough to give him access. If you have a second floor,
trim back tree branches to prevent a cat burglar from making his move.
Consider forming a neighborhood watch program. This
will give you the opportunity to get to know your neighbors better. and
create an invaluable awareness and commitment to crime prevention in
your area. You can speak to your local police department about giving
your group an informal lecture that can provide insight into identifying
a suspicious person and what to do if you spot one loitering on your
street, how to recognize a burglary in progress, how to recognize an
auto theft in progress, and what to do in an emergency. Local PD will
also usually distribute free literature on home safety and sometimes
even offer window stickers and ID cards identifying your neighborhood
organization.
Work with your neighbors to clean up the neighborhood if needed. A
run-down, graffiti-lined, littered street can send the message to
criminals that the residents of your area don’t care about the
neighborhood or each other. That makes a prime location for theft. You
can contact your local public works department to assist in the
clean-up. It can be an excellent chance to bond with your neighbors, not
to mention make your area a more beautiful place to live.
Keep fences, gates, and garage doors locked. It’s
worth investing in a quality padlock for each outside entrance, even if
you only lock it at night. However, since most friends and family won’t
mind calling ahead to let you know they’re visiting, it’s best to leave
them locked at all times. Never leave your garage door open if you
aren’t in it or outside and able to keep an eye on it.
Install large, reflective numbers on your house and mailbox. This
makes it easier for police to identify your home in the event of an
emergency. Burglars prefer dark houses difficult to identify by address
as it can buy them crucial spare moments in the event they’re caught in
the act.
Secure your car. If you must park on the
street, do so in a well-lit area and bring valuables like cell phones,
purses, GPS devices, and satellite radios inside. Never leave anything
of value in plain view, and always lock the doors and roll up windows.
Break-ins can occur in even the safest neighborhoods, and an unlocked
car is one of the easiest possible targets. Never leave a spare key in
the visor or anywhere else inside, even if the car is locked.
Protecting Your Home from the Inside
Keep all doors and windows closed and locked at all times. An
open exterior window or door is an invitation for burglars to easily
enter your home, so keep them shut and securely locked whether you’re
home or not. Don’t underestimate strong window locks, and update them if
needed. Thieves know how to spot weak locks that would be easily forced
open. Make sure exterior doors have deadbolt locks. Sliding doors
should have vertical bolts and a metal or wooden rod in the track to
prevent being forced open or doors being lifted off the track. Never
leave your home without locking the front door, no matter how brief your
trip. Even if it’s pouring rain, don’t forget to take the extra moment
to lock up. Burglars don’t take days off due to weather!
And don’t forget the door attached to the garage. It’s one of the
easiest targets and a likely route of entry. Don’t depend on your
automatic garage door for full security.
Change the locks when moving into a new place. If
you’re a renter, ask the landlord to change them if it wasn’t already
done. Even if an old tenant returned all the keys originally issued,
there’s no way to know for sure if there were ever other copies made and
distributed. It’s better to be safe than sorry, especially when it
comes to a stranger being able to walk into your locked home.
Secure valuables in a home safe or lockbox. If
it is small and not mounted, consider having your safe bolted to the
floor since many burglars will simply take it with them Give your pass
code or combination only to a trusted loved one in case of emergency.
Don’t leave it posted anywhere in your house easily accessible to an
intruder.
Don’t label your personal keys or or hide spares outside. If
your keys are labeled and get lost or stolen you could be in big
trouble, especially if your wallet with your ID and address are with
them. And thieves know to look under mats and in the gravel for fake
rocks to find hidden keys, so instead leave a spare with a trusted
neighbor. If you live in a rural area and your closest neighbor is miles
down the road, opt for a combination lockbox in a discreet area of your
property.
Add privacy film to decorative glass on and around exterior doors. Stained
and decorative glass displays can be a beautiful addition to any
entrance, but they can present a bit of a security issue. Line them with
privacy film to distort the view from the outside and reduce the
chances of window shopping or alerting an unwanted visitor to your
presence (or lack thereof). This can be especially beneficial for anyone
who lives alone or in a house with children old enough to be left on
their own.
Consider buying a home security system. There
are countless features with any security system, and some particularly
valuable ones are outdoor motion detectors, sensors at exterior doors,
windows, and the door attached to the garage, an outdoor alarm to alert
other neighbors to an intrusion, and security cameras. Select the
features that best fit your needs and be sure to go with a well-known,
reputable company. Once it’s installed, make it a regular habit to use
it. Though it may seem inconvenient to have to arm the system every time
you leave the house, many burglars are aware that the responsibility is
often neglected and may not be deterred by window stickers or yard
signs warning of home protection.
Do your best to learn and inform your family about the security
system to cut down on false alarms. They can actually bring on expensive
fines not to mention annoy your neighbors. Plus, you don’t want to have
a boy-who-cried-wolf effect where your neighbors eventually learn to
ignore your alarm anytime it goes off!
Reinforce windows with safety glass or metal bars. It
may seem an extreme step, but burglars will often break a small window
in order to gain entry. Make it impossible for them to break through by
installing safety glass or impossible to squeeze through by installing
metal bars. There are plenty of decorative options for metal grilles
that can make the adjustment both practical and aesthetically-pleasing.
Protecting Your Home While You’re on Vacation
Double- and triple-check all doors and windows before you leave. Make
sure your house is as locked-up and secure as it can be in your
absence. (Don’t forget the door leading to the garage!) Be sure to leave
some curtains and blinds open to give the illusion that someone is
around. Thieves tend to take note of a house that’s clearly been closed
up.
Talk to a trusted neighbor about helping create a “lived-in” look. Have
them use your outdoor trash cans and collect your mail, newspapers, and
any delivered packages. Stacked up mail and newspapers along with empty
trash cans can be a clear sign to anyone that you’re not home and may
be gone a while. If you’re taking a winter getaway, ask your neighbor to
create tire tracks in your driveway and leave footprints leading up to
your front door to create the illusion that someone is home. If you’re
taking an extended summer vacation, pay someone to cut your grass and
keep the yard tidy.
Don’t forget to give your spare key directly to your neighbor rather
than leaving it under the mat or in a faux rock or statue. It’s
important to leave a key in case of emergencies, but it’s also helpful
to have someone check in on your home periodically to ensure no one has
entered in your absence. Make sure you leave a contact number where you
can be reached while you’re away. And always return the favor to a
neighbor in need!
Put timers on lights. Select a few rooms in
your house to remain lit to reduce the chances that any thief casing
the neighborhood will notice that you’ve been gone. Have outdoor lights,
especially around entrances, set to light up every evening. A bright
house welcomes friendly guests, but a dark house welcomes undesirable
visitors.
Lock your garage door and disconnect the automatic opener. This
is an easy, but often forgotten step to keep your home safe while away.
Garage doors seem like impenetrable forces so it’s easy to overlook
additional steps in securing them. But if you’re going to be gone for a
week and won’t need the automatic lift anyway, why not disconnect it and
add an easy extra layer of security?
Leave a radio on and turn down your doorbell. A
battery-operated radio is a practical, cheap way to make it sound like
someone is around. And since many burglars ring the doorbell or knock to
see if anyone’s home turning down the sound of the doorbell combined
with a loud radio will make thieves unsure if the house is empty or if
the resident simply doesn’t hear the door.
Don’t advertise your trip. It’s pretty
common for people to post all about their upcoming trip on social media,
but avoid the urge. The more people who know your house will be empty,
the more you open yourself up to the possibility of a break-in.
Similarly, don’t leave a message on your landline answering machine that
you’re out of town.
Home invasion and burglary may never truly be eliminated from
society, but their threats shouldn’t cause you to live your life in
fear. Take these simple measures to secure your home, and reduce the
chances that a crook will even look at it twice!
Link to the article:
https://www.homeadvisor.com/r/securing-your-home-from-burglary/
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https://stoptomwithhomeprotection.wordpress.com/
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