How to prevent burglary?

Knowing how to prevent a burglary is perhaps one of the most important things you should know when you own and rent a property. In this article I am going to give you a couple of tips that you should put into action as soon as possible. If you use all of these, then the chances of a burglary being committed in your property is significantly reduced.

Whenever you leave your home, no matter for how long, ensure that all of the windows and the doors are closed. It doesn’t even matter if you are just ‘popping out’ for a couple of minutes. An opportunistic thief could get in and out of your property in that time. Some people suggest that you install a home security system that ensures that it cannot be ‘set’ until every window and door is locked. These may cost a little, but what happens if you forget to close just one window? You are providing an entry point for someone getting into your home.

If you are going to be leaving your house for long periods of time, i.e. going away on vacation then you may wish to consider putting in ‘automatic timer’ switches. These will turn your lights or other electrical equipment on and off at set times. This gives the impression to people outside that someone is in the property, even if there really isn’t. Remember, most burglars will be watching a house for a number of days beforehand to see what your habits are. You don’t want them to notice that the lights haven’t been turned on for a number of days do you? If you are leaving your property for a while then you may want to ask a neighbour to check your property from time to time, and even check your mail for you. This is perhaps one of the biggest signs that a property is unattended.

You will also wish to make your property as ‘undesirable’ to burglars as possible. This means leaving nothing of value on display. This of course includes the obvious such as jewellery and money, but it could also include less obvious items such as electrical equipment and children’s toys. Basically, tidy your house up if you are going out, do not leave things on show, most burglars will peer through a window before deciding whether to take a risk or not and break into your property.

Don’t forget to clean your yard as well! A number of burglars are opportunistic, and if they notice something such as garden tools or loose bricks then you are giving them a way in which to smash into your property.

These reasons are all well and good, but the best way to prevent a burglary is to have a home security system installed. This can help prevent your property no matter where you are. Most burglars will avoid a household which has a home security system installed, and those that do get into your house will be caught out by a 24/7 monitoring system.

Hopefully these tips have been of some use to you, and that they help prevent burglary in your home!