It seems like every night on the news, no matter where you live, there is another story about a break-in, a robbery, or some other sort of crime. It is enough to keep you from sleeping at night. So what on earth can you possibly do to keep yourself and your loved ones safe in the face of a seemingly endless tide of crime? The answer is quite simple, actually. Taking these few easy steps will go a very long way towards ensuring the safety of you and the people you care about.
The first thing you should think about are your locks. Do you have them on all of your doors and windows? Make sure that every single door and window in your house has a sturdy, secure lock. Deadbolts on doors are a great way to protect yourself. Did you change them when you moved in? If you did not change the locks when you moved into your new place you should definitely go ahead and do so to make sure none of the old tenants (or their friends!) have keys. Of course, simply making sure you have locks everywhere is not sufficient. To be safe, make sure you lock every door and every window every time you leave the house. When you come home, keep all of the doors and windows locked, as well. A tremendous number of robberies take place not because the robber was able to break in but because he was able to get in through an unlocked door or window. By the way, this rule for locking windows goes even for those who live in high rise apartments- you would be amazed how easy it is to access those windows via rooftops or fire escapes.
The second thing you should consider is a home security system from one of the providers operating in your area. Make sure you talk to several different providers to figure out what works best for you and your home, but also look out for a few specific things. For one thing, make sure there is a home alarm system that rings or makes some sort of noise to scare away intruders. For another thing, confirm that the home security provider has a connection to the local authorities so that the police are instantly notified in the event of a break-in and can come to your aid. As you can see from how useless car alarms are, a home security system which does nothing more than ring an alarm is not sufficient to keep you safe! Also look into setting up a communication system with your home security provider based not just on your landline but on your cell phone, as well. This way if something happens to your landline (the power goes out, a thief cuts it, etc.), you can still be connected with the people who will keep you safe.
And of course, the best thing you can do is to simply exercise common sense! Do not let strangers into your home, do not leave your door wide open, do not give out your address or your keys unnecessarily, you get the picture!
The first thing you should think about are your locks. Do you have them on all of your doors and windows? Make sure that every single door and window in your house has a sturdy, secure lock. Deadbolts on doors are a great way to protect yourself. Did you change them when you moved in? If you did not change the locks when you moved into your new place you should definitely go ahead and do so to make sure none of the old tenants (or their friends!) have keys. Of course, simply making sure you have locks everywhere is not sufficient. To be safe, make sure you lock every door and every window every time you leave the house. When you come home, keep all of the doors and windows locked, as well. A tremendous number of robberies take place not because the robber was able to break in but because he was able to get in through an unlocked door or window. By the way, this rule for locking windows goes even for those who live in high rise apartments- you would be amazed how easy it is to access those windows via rooftops or fire escapes.
The second thing you should consider is a home security system from one of the providers operating in your area. Make sure you talk to several different providers to figure out what works best for you and your home, but also look out for a few specific things. For one thing, make sure there is a home alarm system that rings or makes some sort of noise to scare away intruders. For another thing, confirm that the home security provider has a connection to the local authorities so that the police are instantly notified in the event of a break-in and can come to your aid. As you can see from how useless car alarms are, a home security system which does nothing more than ring an alarm is not sufficient to keep you safe! Also look into setting up a communication system with your home security provider based not just on your landline but on your cell phone, as well. This way if something happens to your landline (the power goes out, a thief cuts it, etc.), you can still be connected with the people who will keep you safe.
And of course, the best thing you can do is to simply exercise common sense! Do not let strangers into your home, do not leave your door wide open, do not give out your address or your keys unnecessarily, you get the picture!
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