In reference to home security, what is the first thing you think about when you hear that someone’s home was burglarized? Usually the first thing that comes to mind is that the home owner should have installed some sort of alarm or security system to prevent this from happening. Unfortunately, even people who have alarm systems and surveillance systems can be susceptible to being robbed.
Many times, the person robbing your home is someone who has been inside your home before and knows exactly what is inside waiting for them. The truth is, most criminals will not enter a home where they’re not sure if there’s a security system of some sort. This includes home owners with dogs, alarm systems, security systems, and even guns. If the burglar has a chance to get in your home, they can quickly assess the situation and memorize what kind of obstacles they will have when entering your home.
Here are some things to look out for that will help prevent anyone from burglarizing your home:
1. Beware of who you allow into your home or on your property
Recently, I received a letter from my utility company warning me not to allow anyone in my home posing to work for the utilities company. They mentioned that they will never ask to enter your home without prior notice and all employees will have an ID that they must show. If you don’t have an appointment, there’s no reason for anyone to enter your home. Luckily, I have a very large wolf-dog, Luna, that hangs out in my back yard and most people who see her are instantly frightened by her size and ferocious look, so they instantly know to stay away. I had a meter reader from the gas company come out who asked me to put my dog away so that he could read the meter. I normally keep a lock on my gate so no one is able to just walk in the yard while she’s out, and so that no one leaves the doors open for the her to run away. I noticed that this man had originally tried to jump my fence until he saw Luna running towards him. Just to give you an idea of what he saw, here are some photos of Luna the Wolfdog:
I kind of laughed to myself about it because first of all, no one should be jumping my fence. Especially when they see that there is a lock on the fence. Why not just knock first? My car was even out in the driveway which normally signifies that someone is home. I’m sure this man will definitely knock first the next time. Once he saw Luna the Wolfdog, he then knocked and asked me to put her away, and it got me thinking. What if he wasn’t really working for the utility company and was just trying to scope out what was in the back yard? You can never be too careful. If someone does come out to your house asking to come inside, ask for identification, and before letting them in, verify with your utilities company and call the police if you need to. They will come out to verify that the person asking to come into your home is legitimate. If you don’t have access to a large beast that will show a nice set of teeth to an intruder, some of the following suggestions may help save your home from being robbed.
2. Don’t allow anyone inside to use your bathroom or phone
Another thing that can has been admitted by burglars is that they will ask to use the bathroom in your house. Just picture this scenario. You hire a company to cut your grass month to month and you get to know the workers on a “Hi and Bye” basis, but you never truly learn who they are. One day one of the men ask to use your bathroom and you kindly allow him into your house. I would suggest that you never allow someone into your home who you don’t know, but some people are too nice and don’t want to seem rude by saying no. It’s your right to say no, just remember that. However, if you do decide to trust them and let them in your house, make sure to check the bathroom windows once they leave. Sometimes burglars will ask to use your restroom and then unlock your windows so they may come back later and have an easy way into your house. If you don’t have an alarm system with sensors on your windows, you would never know that they opened it and went into your house until it was too late. If they had to break a window to get in, you would know the second you arrived and saw the broken glass, so most burglars will try to find a way around this. The more time they are given between the burglary and you finding out, the less likely you’ll find out who it was.
3. Take notice of what you leave and have outside of your home
If you have nice things outside your home, it’s an easy way for someone to have an idea of what kind of stuff you have inside of your home. For instance, letting your kids leave their nice toys outside your home may give a burglar a clue that you have even nicer toys for them inside the home including gaming consoles, expensive electronics and more. This shows someone scoping out your home how much money you have and makes you a better target.
Burglars will also notice if you have mail piling up in your mailbox or maybe even flyers or newspapers that are beginning to pile up outside. This will let a burglar know that you’re not always home or that you have been away for a long period of time. Make sure to have a neighbor you trust bring in your newspapers or mail if you are away so that robbers don’t know that you’re gone.
While they are at it, make sure that if there’s snow outside of your house that they walk around and create some tracks so that it shows someone has recently been there and around the house. It’s easy to tell that no one has been in or out of the house If there has been fresh snow sitting there for a week undisturbed. Or better yet, maybe they will shovel the snow for you.
4. Be smart about your alarm system installation
If you do decide to have an alarm put into your home, make sure that your keypads aren’t near any windows. With technology these days, it’s very easy for someone to use a digital camera to zoom into your window from across the street and see or record exactly what you are punching into your security keypad.
Also, a security company that knows what they’re doing is going to make sure that your motion detectors are pointed correctly and that every window in your home has a sensor on it. This means your window over the sink, bathroom windows, and even secondary floor windows are covered as well. If a burglar wants to get into your home, they will use any means possible to get in. And remember, this is more than likely going to be someone that’s been in your home before so they will know exactly which windows are unlocked or unarmed most of the time.
5. Pretend you’re home.
Most burglars will check first to make sure whether or not you are home. This may mean that they will knock on the door first to check if anyone will open it. If you do open it, they may offer you a service such as cleaning your gutters or cutting your grass. They may even simply just ask for directions. Be wary of this.
If you’re not home and would like to save energy, most people will not leave their lights completely on while they are away. The cool thing is that there are some devices out there which will simulate your presence at home. There’s a device called FakeTV which will shine lights in your home or window to simulate a TV being on. You can even set it on a timer so that it comes on when you want it to.
If you have a DVR and security camera surveillance system from SecurityCameraKing.com you can also setup your cameras to notify you if someone is in or near your house. The cameras can be set to motion detection and the DVR has a feature you can turn on so that it’ll send you an email or notification to your smart device. One way is to receive a screen shot from which ever camera you choose, another is to just receive a standard notification and you will be able to open your live viewing software on your smartphone or tablet in order to view your cameras live, and see if there really is an intruder on your property. You can then decide on whether or not you need to call the police. Most DVR’s can now also be integrated with your alarm system so that the motion detection on the camera can set off an alarm. This way you don’t have to buy any motion detectors along with the surveillance system. Just make sure the DVR you purchase has alarm inputs and outputs on the back.
6. Burglars may be looking in from the outside
Remember that leaving your blinds open is another way for burglars to look inside to see what you have. They will drive or even walk by the neighborhood at night just before you go to bed to see what you have inside and pick a target house. Try to keep your blinds closed once the sun goes down so burglars can’t see inside. Some will even walk around during the day and try to look official with a uniform or clipboard in hand. If you see anyone suspicious don’t feel weird keeping an eye on what they’re doing.
Having thorny bushes near your windows can also be a deterrent since it will make it harder for anyone to come right up to your windows to look inside.
7. Lock your windows and doors
Believe it or not, some people will leave their doors and windows unlocked when they leave their house. I have done this in the past as well, when being too lazy to check everything before leaving even if it’s just for a short amount of time. Some burglars have even admitted to knocking on doors and when no one answers they try the doorknob to see if it’s unlocked and will walk right in.
8. Don’t announce that you’re away
One of the most common things I’ve seen lately is people announcing online when they’re leaving their house or going on vacation. If you don’t have the proper surveillance system set up to notify you when someone is in your house, announcing your departure online is an easy way to make yourself a target to robbery.
As you can see, there are many different things you can do to make sure your home isn’t going to become a target for robbery. Just be smart about it and you may save yourself the trouble of having your day ruined because of an intruder. You’ll feel very violated especially when there are so many things you could have done to prevent it. The best solution against this is being prepared. I’ve heard many people telling me that they’re looking to get a surveillance system or alarm because they were robbed. By then it’s already too late and the damage is done!
