Home Security

Do you consider you home to be safe? Your home is probably the safest place you spend your time, but your home is still a dangerous place, even if it were bulletproof- yes, that’s a thing. Anyways, your home probably is a safe place, but there are always risks. It is imperative to have a proper understanding of home security in order to protect yourself and your loved ones. Criminals look for easy targets- in this case, easily accessible homes. We want to be difficult, unattractive targets.

Did you know that most sexual assaults take place in the victims’ homes? When females are surprised in their home by a burglar, many times the burglary turns into a sexual assault. Break-ins usually happen one of two ways- the doors or the windows. Most burglaries happen during daylight hours when the majority of people are at work, at school, or running errands. Incorporate a few habits into your daily routine to make your home safer. Start by using the layered approach where you create layers that a criminal has to go through.

Proceed with small steps when working toward home security. Take a lap around your home, see if you can point out any weak points that would give a criminal easy access. Can your expensive electronics, furniture, art, or anything else of value be easily seen through the windows? Does a window or door look easy to get into? If you notice these things, a criminal will notice them too. Have a friend or someone you trust try to break into your home. This is an easy way to find the existing weak spots.

Anytime you move to a new home, change your locks. You never know who has keys to the old locks, and you don’t want a stranger to be able to easily walk into your locked home making your home security a moot point. Don’t hide your keys outside of your home. Thieves know to look under the porch mat, to look for the fake rock, and to look under and in the flowerpot to find your hidden key. If possible, leave your spare key with a trusted neighbor.

Make sure your street address numbers are clearly visible during the day, and at night. The faster emergency services can find you, the faster they can help you in an emergency. Don’t leave tools laying around. Criminals can use your own tools to break into your house faster and easier, as well as use them as weapons against you.

If you buy an item for your home such as a new T.V., video game console, or other expensive items, don’t just set the empty box out for the trash. This tells burglars that you have expensive electronics for them to take. For better home security, buy a box cutter and spend the time breaking down the boxes or packaging, and putting it in garbage bags. Electronics are the second most common valuable that burglars go for. Not to mention, your garbage men will probably thank you.

Install a safe, but make sure to bolt it to the wall or to the floor. Otherwise, burglars can just take it with them to open later. Keep an inventory of your valuables. This way you will know if anything has been stolen, and you can accurately file a claim with your insurance company. An inventory can also be used for identifying your belongings since thieves usually try to sell your items for cash once they steal them.

Home security can extend to your car as well. Take anything out of your vehicle that has personal information on it in case of a car burglary, or car theft. Also, make sure porch lights aren’t easily accessible. Tampering with lights is a criminal tactic. They will unscrew, remove, or break the light bulb to be shielded by the darkness.

Add deterrents as part of your home security layers:
• Alarm system
• Beware of dog sign, dog bowl, and leash
• Large sized boots outside the entry door with a little mud on them.
• Listing only the last name and first initial- this also doesn’t give away a single woman living alone.