In today's society, crime is far from unheard of with burglary on the rise. It is not just the local supermarket or favorite retail store, but it's homes as well. This is why it is more important than ever to make sure that not only ourselves, but our homes are protected. So, how do we do this? Do we hire a security team? Do we never leave our homes and try to protect it ourselves? Do we just lock everything? Not exactly. Though those could be helpful, they're not entirely practical or cost efficient.
For starters, yes, always make sure your doors and windows are locked. That's the first step into helping keep our homes safe and secure. The Washington Post, posted an article with several ways we can keep our homes safer and as usual, we are going to dive into those, give our input, and our suggestions as well. Let's begin!
A tip they suggest is to secure your perimeters. This means all windows and doors, make sure they're locked, there aren't any holes or spaces in them, and that they aren't faulty in anyway. Make sure they are made of strong material to reduce your chances of someone breaking in through them and that burglars often don't try to pick locks.
The next suggestion was to get a security audit. I have not heard of this until now but apparently some police departments provide this service and have someone evaluate it in case anything isn't safe. I'm definitely going to try this one out myself! Take a look around yourself to see if you can spot anything that could use improvement.
Up next is to lose the key in locks only. Add a deadbolt for extra protection. My family did this recently and it honestly is much harder to get in. Definitely recommend this one! They also talk about securing the sliding glass doors. Apparently they can often be lifted off the hinges and their connectors are not the strongest. When purchasing a door like this, do your research on picking the right one and have the professional who is installing it answer these questions, otherwise, choose a different door. If you currently have one, test it out yourself to make sure it cannot easily be opened or removed. Speaking of doors, they suggest to replace weak doors which is a given. Anything light and hollow is more than likely a no-go. Metal is often the safest option, however, not everyone's choice, so a solid-wood door would work as well. While replacing and securing doors, you should be doing the same thing for your windows. Make sure your windows are locked! Only shutting them, isn't going to provide much protection.
Another tip they suggestion is keeping your valuables out of sight, which is a given. Anything expensive should never be in sight to the outside world. With this, renting a safe deposit box was also suggested and maybe a safe in your home. Lock up your weapons while you're gone so no one can come in and take them, or worse, wait for you to get home and use them.
Landscaping! Believe it or not, this is often something burglars look at. Why? If the landscaping looks as though it hasn't been done, they will assume that person is rarely home and/or are currently away so they are more than likely to place that person as a potential target. In addition to that, keep a light on when you're away or the tv on! Potentially have a vehicle there if you're able to or the garage door shut so they think that your vehicle is in there. People aren't often going to want to rob you if they know you're home!
Get a dog! This isn't recommended for everyone because a) not everyone wants one or b) not everyone can have them due to life situations or allergies or financial reasons and more. However, people typically don't want to rob a place where there is a dog because dogs are loud and the burglar would be made out. They especially don't want to rob a place with a big dog in case that dog is protective and decides to attack to protect it's home and family. We have a dog and he sounds vicious!
Getting to know your neighbors is helpful, but again, that comes with trust. Some people are worth getting to know, and others not. Others may pretend to have your best interest at heart, but may be the ones to rob you in the end. This is where getting a security system with cameras and alarms will come in handy. They may not fully prevent something from happening, but they can help bring justice!
Hopefully these tips and tricks were helpful and you are able to keep your home safe and secure and give you peace of mind too! I know for sure that I will be putting in place some of these tips and tricks that I haven't tried! Have a fun and safe weekend!
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