There are approximately 2.5 million burglaries every year.

This is why it’s essential to protect your home from possible intruders. Fortunately, there are many ways to secure your home and alert you when there’s a threat.

If you’re not sure how to achieve a secure home, check out these tips.

1. Develop a Good Relationship With the Local Police

The first tip is the most important. Develop a good relationship with your local police department. A police officer can provide the best insight on what to do and who to contact in case a burglary occurs.

They can also give advice on ways to prevent burglary and provide an analysis of crime statistics in your local area.

While calling 911 is the recommended course of action during a burglary, no one can predict how fast the police will show up.

Knowing the best contact for your local police department and knowing who’s on duty can improve the chances of police showing up quickly and arresting the burglar.

2. Start Protecting the Outside

When adding home protection measures, many homeowners focus on improving their locks or adding an alarm system, preventing burglars from entering their homes.

While this is important, it’s also essential to consider your outside elements and how they interfere with a break-in.

For example, if your front yard or backyard has many bushes, a burglar can hide in your yard and plan their break-in.

Identify any potential hiding places, such as bushes or lawn décor. If your home has multiple stories, make sure there are no trees or ladders around where a burglar can climb to an upper-story window.

There are also outdoor security products you can install. These include motion lights, wireless driveway alarms, and outdoor security cameras.

3. Keep Your Home Well-Lit

A well-lit patio, yard, and home give a burglar limited hiding opportunities. If a burglar is casing homes and notices your home is always lit, they could decide to avoid robbing your home.

You can install motion sensor lights that activate when they detect movement. For inside the home, smart lighting turns lights on and off in different rooms, making it look like someone is home.

4. Ask Your Neighbors to Help

If you have friendly and trustworthy neighbors, ask them to help identify potential threats or suspicious activity in the neighborhood. If you will be out of town, ask them to check around your property regularly to ensure it’s safe.

If your neighborhood doesn’t have a neighborhood watch group, organize one.  Everyone will stay alert and report any suspicious behavior.

You can even ask a police officer to regularly make rounds in your neighborhood to further deter burglars.

5. Create a Safety Routine

Do you ever forget to lock the doors or close the windows? This is probably because you don’t have a safety routine in place. A safety routine consists of locking doors and checking to ensure doors and windows are secured and locked.

Most people have a safety routine for when they leave and when they go to bed. However, it’s smart to perform your safety routine regularly, even when you’re home. That’s because 30% of burglaries occur when the victim is home.

Your safety routine should also include lock inspection. Check and see if the locks work properly. Try opening and closing doors and windows after locking them to ensure they’re secure.

6. Don’t Advertise Shopping Sprees or Traveling

Many people post about their shopping sprees — such as buying a new gaming console or expensive jewelry — on social media. In addition, people also post pictures of their vacation while they’re out of town.

However, avoid doing this at all costs. Burglars can see these posts on your social media accounts, making you a prime target if they know they can steal expensive items. 

Even if you keep your social media accounts private, a burglar could be someone you know or someone who follows your account, so make sure you’re only letting people you trust follow you, and never reveal your location in your posts.

7. Keep All Valuables Inside

Valuables aren’t limited to cash and jewelry. Your lawnmower, bicycles, and that brand-new grill are all items burglars steal. Make sure you keep all valuables locked inside your home or garage.

If you store your outdoor valuables in a shed, ensure it’s locked at all times. Burglars break into more than 60 sheds daily. In addition, keep your garage locked and closed, even if you’re home.

Valuables also include one item many homeowners forget: your key! Avoid leaving a spare key outside. Thieves know to check under floor mats and around yard décor for hidden keys.

8. Know Who Is At Your Door

A common trick burglars will pull is knocking on the door. They do this for two reasons: 1. To see if anyone is home, and 2. As an easy way to enter your home.

Most burglars don’t want to do the work while someone is home. In fact, most burglars don’t have any intention of harming homeowners, even though they likely carry weapons.

But they will commonly knock on the door to ensure no one is home.

This is why it’s essential you have a peephole or any other way of knowing who’s at the door. In case they’re a burglar casing your home, you have an easy way to identify them.

But let’s say a burglar doesn’t mind robbing you while you’re home. They will knock on your door and force their way in when you open the door. Knowing who’s at the door will prevent you from letting a stranger inside.

Keep a Secure Home At All Times

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