Everyone wants their home to be the safest place on earth, free from thieves, burglars, and other criminals that may threaten their security. If you want to improve your home security, there are many steps you can take to deter burglars both when you’re at home and also while you are away. They are as follows:
1. Lock your external doors at all times
Any other home security steps you take are futile if the thief can walk straight into your house through the front door. According to studies, most burglaries occur simply because doors or windows were left open giving the burglar the window of opportunity they need. To prevent this, make sure all your external doors are locked at all times, even when going for a short walk or even when you’re at home. This includes balcony doors and garage doors.
2. Use exterior lighting
Believe it or not, most thieves are extremely paranoid before a robbery and are discouraged easily. Well-lit entrances and backyards are an effective deterrent, as thieves will be looking for homes that they can access without being detected. To make it even better, you can have the external lights as motion-activated.
3. Keep curtains closed while away
Before robbing a house, most thieves will scope it out to see if there is something worth stealing. Leaving the curtains open gives the thieves a view of the rooms which may give them more than enough motivation to break in.
4. Don’t hide a spare key outside your house
A lot of people have a habit of hiding their spare keys right outside their house; maybe under a rock, in a flower vase, or other areas. A persistent burglar can easily find spare keys especially if you keep it in such obvious places. Also, a person may accidentally see you hiding it and think of stealing from you. Instead, you can give the spare key to a trusted person who lives nearby.
5. Invest in a modern home security system
Modern technology has helped people to come up with all sorts of home security systems that make it a lot easier to monitor your home. First of all, you need an alarm system to detect when someone tries or succeeds in getting unauthorized access to your home. You may also install cameras which you can connect to your phone or laptop to be able to view what’s happening in your home in real time from anywhere in the world.
6. Get a Dog
In addition to being man’s best friend, dogs are great for your home security. A simple bark of a dog can save your life. Dogs have the ability to detect danger and alert you immediately even at odd hours. Also, thieves are less likely to break into a home with a dog due to fear of getting bitten and losing the element of surprise. Even if you don’t have a dog, hang a number of “Beware of Fierce Dog” stickers near your yard entrance.
7. Upgrade your doors and locks
If your house is 20 years old, you can’t rely on security systems that were in place 20 years ago. Upgrade your doors to modern, stronger ones and replace your locks with modern ones especially if you have ever lost your keys.