Home security FAQ

It is not a scenario that most people want to think about. The idea of someone breaking into your home, invading your privacy, and putting your safety and the safety of your family at risk is the ultimate nightmare for most people. Unfortunately, according to the DOJ, more than 3. 5 million households were burglarized between a four-year period in the early 2000’s.

What makes this statistic more terrifying is the fact that in more than a quarter of these burglaries, at least one family member was home. And in more than 260,000 of these incidents, the person who was at home during the burglary became a victim of a violent crime. These statistics clearly show that burglary and home invasions are a legitimate fear for homeowners. The following are some tips that can keep you and your family safe if you find yourself in this heart-wrenching situation.

Don’t Panic

Although this is a situation where emotions can run high, you and your family will be safest if you can keep a cool head. Avoid the temptation to want to confront the burglar. If at all possible, exit your home and then call 911.

If you are unable to safely exit your home, but your home has a security system, press the emergency alarm notification so that your security company knows that you need immediate assistance.

If you’re trapped on a second level and cannot get out without encountering the burglar, stay quiet in a safe hiding space until you are certain that the assailant has left your home. If possible, use your cellular phone to dial 911.

If You Encounter the Burglar

This is another situation where keeping a cool head is essential. Do not make sudden movements, do not look at the intruder in the eye, and do not do things that can be interpreted as aggression. Keep your hands plainly visible, preferably at shoulder level. Comply with the burglar’s demands as long as they do not put you or your family’s life in jeopardy. Nothing is worth losing your life over.

If Your Life Is in Danger

In life-threatening situations, the goal should be for you and your family to escape without resorting to violence. In most violent altercations, the criminal has the upper hand. You can attract attention by screaming, making loud noise, or breaking things.

When you are face-to-face with the burglar, make a mental note of their appearance. How tall is he? How is he built? What is his eye color? What is his ethnicity? Does he have tattoos? All of these things can later be given to the police so that you can make a description.

Recovering from a Burglary

Even if you are sure that the burglar has left your home, do not return to your home until law-enforcement officials arrive. Resist the urge to want to confirm what items have been stolen. You can do this once the police get there.

When you get inside the home, don’t touch anything. You could inadvertently destroy evidence such as fingerprints that are extremely powerful tools for prosecutors.

Until law-enforcement officials arrive, find a safe place to stay. It could be at a neighbor’s home, it could be in your car, or it could be in a restaurant down the street.

Cleaning up and Getting Back to Normal

When you finally get back into your home, take inventory. Itemize the things that were taken and provide a complete list to both law-enforcement agents and your insurance company. Take photographs of any property that has been damaged. This includes doors that have been kicked in and windows that have been broken. Also, take note of the make and model of any electronic devices that were stolen.

In the days following a burglary, your home will likely feel like a very unsafe place. Your children may do better if they are with friends or relatives until the home has been put back together.

The process of cleaning up and replacing stolen items can be very traumatic. Ask friends and family to help you as they will not only provide physical support, but they will also provide you the emotional support you need. If during the cleaning process you come across an item that does not belong to you, do not touch it. Immediately call law enforcement as it could be a clue.

Preparing for What’s Next

There is nothing that you can do to 100 percent guarantee that your home will not be broken into again. However, there are a lot of things that you can do to minimize the chances of you suffering another burglary. All of these things require you to be proactive and educate yourself on home security options.

Survey Your Home Security System

While it’s never your fault that your home was burglarized, taking an honest appraisal of your home security system may help you to prevent a future burglary. How was the burglar able to gain access to your home? Are there inexpensive ways that you can help to protect your home from another attack?

Do not be afraid to avail yourself of the expertise of law enforcement officials. They can conduct a survey of your home, and it won’t cost you a penny. Pick their brain on things that you can do, like install a security system, security cameras, or even get a guard dog.

Serialize your expensive electronic items. Many people do not know that most police precincts will do this for you free of charge.

If you did not have a security system prior to the break in, get one. Having a security system in your home takes your risk of being a burglary victim from 1 in 3 to 1 in 250, so it is an investment that is more than worth it.

Finally, be patient with yourself. It may take some time to recover the physical things that you’ve lost. And it will take even longer to recover the sense of peace in your own home. But note that with a little effort and with a little time, your home can feel like a secure place for you and your family to be in once again.

By now, you are familiar with the statistics. There are four burglaries every minute in the United States with approximately three quarters of those taking place in residential properties. The following are 10 steps that can help you avoid becoming another statistic.

1.Keep Your Door Secure

More than a third of burglars come into residential properties the same way that everyone else does, through the front door. For this reason, it is essential that you do an annual inspection of your front door. Check the door frames, especially if they are made of wood. Make sure the wood has not become hollowed out.

Check the door slot to make sure that someone cannot simply reach through it and unlock your door. While the front door of your home may be what makes your house look pretty, it’s also what keeps it safe. So in this instance, safety trumps beauty.

An excellent safety feature is electronic door locks. They are secure, and they provide you with alerts when your door is tampered with. They give you the ability to remotely access your door, letting in people who you want to enter, while keeping unwanted intruders out.

2.Secure Your Windows

The majority of window manufacturers make windows that have weak locks. For this reason, windows are a major point of entry for burglars. Step up your window security by installing your own locks. Tempered glass windows or laminated windows are stronger than what traditionally comes from manufacturers.

Install glass breaks. These sensors react to the sound that glass makes when it breaks. These work in conjunction with your security system to warn you of a break in as well as alert law enforcement.

3.Get a Security System

Every home should have a security system. Whether it is something simple like door sensors and window sensors connected to an alarm, or something more complicated like CCTV connected to a monitoring system, a security system is essential. You need to evaluate your own needs and then select a system that is the most comfortable for you.

A good safe is an important part of your security system. Safes allow you to store the items that are valuable to you in a hidden place. You can find a safe that you can bolt to the floor, and there are also safes that are designed to look like everyday objects lying around your home.

4.Get to Know the People Who Live around You

Neighbors who care about you are neighbors who will keep an eye on you and your property. If your neighbors do not know who you are, they have no idea if the activity going on in and around your home is normal or if it merits concern.

5.Test Your Home’s Security Readiness

You may think that your home is secure, but there may be blind spots that you have missed. Have a friend walk around your home pretending that they want to break in. Have them jot down things like value items that are out in the open, windows that are not secure, and other areas that need to be tightened up.

6.Avail Yourself of Law Enforcement

Law enforcement officials are eager to help you prevent a break in. Talk to the local police and ask about neighborhood watch programs. Many police jurisdictions offer free home security inspections. These tips can go a long way in helping you to protect your home.

7.Let There Be Light

Many people are surprised to learn that the majority of burglaries happen during the day. However, there is valid reason to be concerned about break-ins during the night. The more illuminated your landscape is, the harder it will be for burglars to find a quiet spot for them to do their dirty work. Using lights with motion sensors add a second level of protection for your home.

8.Don’t Give Them a Place to Hide

Having bushes around your home may make your home look more attractive, but they also give burglars an excellent place to conceal themselves. It is better to trim down bushes around your home and instead opt for smaller flowers that are just as attractive but do not provide as much cover.

9.Advertise Your Security System

Putting a yard sign advertising your security system as well as putting decals on your windows does more to deter burglars than the security system itself. This does not mean that you should just put up fake signs and not install a security system, but what it does mean is that when burglars see the signs, they are going to think twice about breaking into your home.

10.What to Do When Everything Fails

There is no such thing as a 100 percent foolproof security plan. You can have the nicest security system, the most expensive safe, and the meanest watchdog and still someone will find a way to break into your home. If that happens, you need to have a clear laid out plan of action.

You and your children should plan in advance how you are going to react in case of a break in. They should have an exit strategy and should know where the family will meet.

When it comes to protecting your home, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This means that you should teach your children about when they should open doors for strangers. Lock the doors and lock the windows whenever you leave. Installing a home automation system can help in this regard as the system will automatically lock things down for you or allow you to lock things down remotely.

No one wants to think about becoming a victim of a burglary. But the odds are that it is something that could happen to you. By following the above mentioned tips, you can do a lot to prevent your home from being burglarized. And if a burglary does happen, you will have a plan in place to keep you and your family safe.

The security concerns you have as an apartment renter are a lot different than the security concerns you have when you own a home. You live in close proximity to a lot of people, and there are always people walking in front of your apartment. According to the National Crime Prevention Council, apartments are 85 percent more likely to be burglarized than a single family home.

Things to Check before You Move in

Before you move in, there are a few home security for renters concerns you should take a look at. For example, are all of the appliances working properly? While this is not directly related to burglary, it is connected to your safety. Appliances that are malfunctioning could result in fire or gas leak. Take the time to check smoke detectors, thermostats, and carbon monoxide detectors.

Get New Locks

When you are moving into a new apartment, insist on having the locks changed. It’s not enough for your landlord to redistribute the locks by putting a lock on your door that was once used on someone else’s door.

You have no idea who has access to old keys, and this could pose a very dangerous situation. Landlords who are concerned about home security for renters may allow their tenants to install electronic locks as an added step in improving security.

Get to Know Your Neighbors

In a lot of apartment communities, it is not uncommon for people to live next door to the same person for many years and not even know their name. This is dangerous because your neighbors are a powerful line of defense in case of an emergency. Before moving in, talk to neighbors and talk to your landlord about the general demographic of the neighborhood, about apartment security concerns, and the lifestyle of nearby tenants.

Law enforcement agents can be an invaluable source of information when it comes to providing you with local crime statistics.

What Is the Lighting Situation?

Before moving in, it is a good idea to drive around the apartment complex at nighttime. Look at the lights and make sure that they work. Working lights and functioning motion detectors are key parts of apartment safety. Intruders love to lurk in the dark, so the more light you have around your apartment property and in the hallways, the safer you will be.

You may want to install motion sensor lights in your apartment. These will alert you in advance if someone is in your home and provide you the security of being able to walk into your home and have it illuminated.

Examine Window Locks

Good window locks prevent intruders from gaining access to your apartment. This is especially true if your apartment is on the ground level. But even if your apartment is on the 10th floor, make sure your locks are working well. It is surprising how determined burglars can be. All windows should be treated as potential points of entry.

Check Apartment Entrances

A good way to determine how secure your apartment building will be is by looking at the state of the apartment door security. If the door is broken, if the intercom seems like it is not functioning, or if it seems like people have been tampering with the door, this may be an indication of a safety concern. It could mean that you would want to look elsewhere for an apartment.

After You Move In

Once you’ve moved in, there are some additional steps you can take to keep your apartment secure. For example, if you’re not 100 percent sure that your landlord replaced the locks with the new ones, buy new apartment door locks yourself and install them. This would be a good time to talk with your landlord about installing keyless door locks.

The Benefit of Keyless Locks

One of the nice things about having a keyless door lock on your apartment is that you can provide your landlord with a temporary access code that allows him to enter your home when there is a scheduled repair or a scheduled inspection.

You will know every time your landlord enters your home because most keyless locks will send an alert to your smartphone or computer telling you that someone is in your home and telling you who has entered your home.

Installing a wireless security camera or two is also a good idea. These can be made to work in conjunction with your locks and with a motion detector.

Get a Security System

There are many security systems that you can install in your apartment. Most security systems for apartments are not wired because you do not have the authority to make structural changes to the apartment.

Most wireless systems are do-it-yourself systems and can be designed to monitor the windows, the doors, smoke detection, and carbon monoxide detection. Wireless security systems can be designed to alert you, alert your neighbors, and alert law enforcement if someone breaks into your apartment.

Get a Safe

Having a safe in your apartment makes it harder for intruders to walk off with your valuables. Since most apartments are small, it will not take a burglar long to search through all of your things. A heavy safe cannot easily be carted off without attracting a lot of attention, and so it serves as a good deterrent for burglars.

When it comes to protecting your apartment, you have to take the initiative. Never be afraid to ask a potential landlord questions about safety. Be prepared to quickly make safety adjustments to your apartment. Talk to law enforcement for any additional tips that you could use to keep your apartment as safe as possible.