Is it easier protecting your home in the modern age? It seems that there's an abundance of security tips out there, but when we are doing our best to look after our family unit, we can be somewhat lazy and rely on technology. Yes, a smart home is a great way to check on our home in real time, such as through our phones, but when we live in an area that is prone to various burglaries, after a while, it can make us anxious. It can make us feel that we are living day to day with the worry that our home will be the one that gets broken into tonight. And so, with this in mind, what are the best ways to protect our home and our family?
Quick Navigation
How Does A Burglar Think?
It's not something that we would give thought to these days because after all, the various security methods we have will suffice. But, it's not just about how secure your home is, but it's about looking at it from the perspective of a burglar, and if there are some major giveaways that your house will be easily broken into. You can learn more about this in terms of how burglars choose a target, but as we are not well versed in the act of burglary ourselves, the best way for us to ensure that we are looking after our home as best as we can is to think about it from their perspective.
How Well Do You Know Your Neighbors?
When we go on vacation, if we trust our neighbors, we can ask them to keep an eye on the property. But if this is not an option where you are, it leaves you with the question; do you want to get to know them better? While, from a defensive point of view, getting a good idea of who you live near to will force you to increase your home security methods if necessary, but on the other hand, finding people in your neighborhood that are community oriented could spur you on to set up a neighborhood watch scheme. Depending on where you live, this might be compulsory, but a lot of people these days are more than happy to keep themselves to themselves. And if your street is very close to an area that's seen a lot of crime recently, how long will it be until your property gets broken into?
Getting to know your neighbors and setting up some form of neighborhood watch scheme is not just about solidarity amongst the locals, but you can get good quality advice from the police through this. It seems that there's a lot less crime in close-knit communities because people can easily spot a stranger. This may very well veer on the nosy side of things, but if there is some suspicious character lurking around, you want to know before they have a chance to break into your property.
Upgrade Your Home = Upgrade Your Security
And while it's a good idea to have a home security system installed, this can give you some peace of mind, there are other things you can do to your home to ensure that it isn't a dead giveaway that it's open for burglary business. One little thing that thieves can do to check if your home is easy to break into is giving a little kick at the bottom of the door. They do this to check if the front door is deadlocked, and if it is not, this means it's easy to break into! Another simple sign that your home could be targeted by thieves is that your home's not particularly well maintained!
Does your front yard has an abundance of paraphernalia like toys and tools? This is a clear sign that there are more interesting items beyond the front door! And it's a little thing, but if you don't have a well maintained front garden, especially where your shrubbery is concerned, this could provide a suitable hiding place for burglars to lurk in the shadows. Motion sensors will help with this naturally, but as your home needs to be looked after, a fence is a very simple way to keep people off your property.
But if you invest in solid fencing, this might work against you, because they are easier to climb, and thieves can hide in them. And as far as curtains and drapes are concerned, to a thief, it can go one of two ways. Firstly, it could highlight that your home has got plenty to hide if you keep them closed constantly or there's nobody at home ever. But on the other hand, if you keep your curtains open constantly, especially on a street where people can see through your front window without any problems, you may as well put an illuminated arrow above your expensive HD ready television!
Here’s a handy hint if an emergency like this ever comes up: have reflective, large numbers on your house and your mailbox. Not only does this make it easier for the police to identify your home, but it can be a mild deterrent for thieves. Many burglars prefer dark houses that are hard to identify.
And one last thing, be aware of cyber stalkers! If your social media accounts are open for everyone to see, and you are trigger happy when it comes to selfies and pictures of your family, someone may very well know every inch of your home and be able to track your movements.
As nice as it is to update our social media accounts with every little thing we're doing that day, you have no idea who is stalking you, especially if you are part of a neighborhood group on social media. Protecting your home in the modern age can be quite a diverse challenge, not just because of formerly safe neighborhoods becoming a bit dangerous, but also social media and burglars becoming savvier, but that's not to say it's impossible to protect your home; you've just got to be a little bit more aware.