Here’s how to protect your home from break-ins!
One of the greatest nightmares for a lot of people, including me, is finding out that burglars have looted your beloved house after a day out or a much-needed vacation.
And since you can’t always stay home and not enjoy any night outs or holiday getaways out of fear of a break-in, you need to do your best to protect your belongings and your home.
Whether you’re heading to a street party or even jetting off on vacation, it’s important to make sure that you’re not leaving your home as a target for potential burglaries. And how do you do that? We have some amazing tips from ex-burglars!
We’ve come across a few ex-burglars who realized how much damage they caused to families all around the country and decided to come clean.
They’ve since made it their life’s work to use their mischievous experience in the area for the greater good of the people and teach them how to protect their homes. So, are you ready to burglar-proof your house? Then keep reading to discover the smartest tips!
1. If you have two locks, use them
The ex-burglars we talked to told us that, unfortunately, not a lot of people have two locks on their doors. Robbers will look at a row of houses, and they’ll choose the ones that only have one lock on the front door because they have easier access.
If you have the possibility, go ahead and install a second lock, and make sure you always use both of them. Here’s something that might give you shivers down your spine: when a burglar gets ready for an attack, they’ll mark a couple of houses. After that, they’ll approach the front entrance and apply pressure with their foot to see whether the door has two locks engaged or not.
Better safe than sorry, right?
2. Get curtains
Here’s something simple but important: invest in curtains or anything else to block off the view of your home’s interior. If you can easily see what the inside of your home looks like, thieves will make the best of it.
They’ll see what items you have and what the people living there are like. This will only encourage them to approach your property, so always keep your privacy.
While it’s always important to keep the view out of your home, make sure you do the same during the holiday season, when Christmas presents are on display. People on the street should never see what or how many presents you have in there, because they’ll think there’s something to catch, and it’s almost like a welcome sign.
3. Ditch your “beware of the dog” sticker
Oh, yes, how many times didn’t we all do that?
Many dog owners like to let everyone know they have a feisty dog by placing a sticker on their front window. They believe that doing that will discourage burglars from breaking in, but the former experts we talked to suggest doing otherwise.
If homeowners have a dog or cat running about, they won’t have an alarm on, so as a thief, you know you’re going to get in there. So ditch your sticker and invest in security cameras and a professional alarm system to protect your home and your family.
4. Purchase window locks
If you don’t have window locks, thieves will go around the back and make sure that the home’s security is even weaker. This will encourage opportunists to take a chance, so take all the necessary safety measures to burglar-proof your home.
5. Keep your mops and brooms out of sight
This might seem strange, but the former burglars we talked to told us that after breaking in through the back of the house, a thief will head for the front door and lean a broom, or something similar, against it so that if you open it, they will hear you and have an opportunity to flee.
Another method used by burglars to defend themselves while they search inside your house is to release the catch on the front door, which will block you when trying to fit your key in the door.
6. Invest in a cage for your letterbox
Many people have their keys ready by the front door, but none of them think about mailbox fishing. Being careless will allow thieves to reach up and lift the keys to the car or the residence by poking a rod through the letterbox.
But that’s not all: you might also be at risk of experiencing the same kind of pinch if you leave your handbag close to the front door, where strangers can easily lift it.
7. Where do you display your items?
Did you know that having a calendar in the kitchen can be seen as an invitation by thieves? When you have a calendar in the kitchen, you’re more likely to mark the dates when there’s an event coming up or the days you’re going to be away from the house.
This will help criminals plan their future crimes, so try to be as private as possible if you don’t want to put yourself at any risk.
8. Take pictures
It’s always a good idea to take pictures of every area of your home and note any valuables as you go, in case of a break-in. Besides being helpful for your insurance company in case of disaster, there’s another reason for this: it could help the police identify any missing things.
The former burglars told us that a thief would probably tip the house over during a theft. This isn’t just because they want to get the job done faster, but also because they want to leave you confused and doubting yourself. You might sense some things are missing, but you wouldn’t know what, and eventually you will think that’s just in your head.
The moral of the story is that you should always keep your privacy and invest in security systems that allow you to protect yourself, your family, and your dear home.
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