You never think your home will get broken into until it happens to you. Unfortunately, many people share this thought. When 1.4 million burglaries occur every year, you can’t afford to take home security lightly.
If security is something you’re concerned about for your home, you aren’t out of luck. Follow the eight security tips below to make your home safe and secure.
1. Re-Enforce Your Doors
Doors are secure when you first build them. Unfortunately, that strength goes down as time goes on.
You need to make sure your doors are reinforced. Start with your door frames. Make sure they are sturdy and that no damage is visible on your door frames.
The next place to look is your hinges. Make sure that they are tight and secure. If they’re loose, it’s much easier to knock your door down.
You also have to worry about someone picking your lock. If you don’t have one already, install a deadbolt on your door to stop lockpicks from breaking in.
2. Brighten Up Your Yard
A lot of property crime happens at night. Criminals don’t want to be visible when they try to break into houses. If you brighten up your yard during the night, they lose the advantage of the dark.
The good news is that this is something you can do without a lot of power. Find a set of solar power lights and place them around your walkways and house siding. They will light up anyone approaching any entrance to your home.
High power spotlights are also available. These operate on a motion sensor and only turn on when someone is detected nearby. This means you can startle an intruder approaching your home with a very bright light.
3. Secure Your WiFi
You don’t only have to worry about physical security anymore. If you aren’t careful, anybody can drive by and get on your WiFi network. If you don’t protect it, intruders will have access to all devices on your WiFi network.
To start, encrypt your WiFi network with a security protocol. The most common one used today is WPA2. You’ll need a password if you want to connect to your WiFi.
Your next step is to hide your WiFi from the public. Doing this means that only the people who know the name of your WiFi access point will be able to connect from their devices.
4. Clean Up Your Landscape
Most burglars don’t pick houses at random. They spend time at their targets to try the best ways inside. This job is much easier when there are plenty of places to hide outside.
Managing your landscape will clear these spots from your yard. The first place to manage is the overgrowth near your home. Trim any bushes and clear tree branches that obstruct the views from your windows.
The same goes for any plants in your yard. If a burglar can hide behind something out of view from your home, they have the opportunity to surveil your house.
5. Install Cameras
The goal of a burglar isn’t to be seen. Any home with a visible camera outside is going to be a lower priority target for criminals.
You want to cover the primary entryways to your home with your home security cameras. This includes both your doors and windows. Ideally, you want a camera that also has night vision so you can see what happens during the night.
If you can, find a system that keeps a recording of activity. If someone does manage to break into your home, this footage will be useful for the police investigation.
6. Automate Your Home
The last thing a burglar wants to do is break into a home when someone is awake. They run the risk of having their identity exposed and being injured by the homeowner. Many thieves wait until people are sleeping or nobody is home.
The good news is that you can make it seem like someone is home at all times. Home automation is available to switch your appliances on and off during the evening and night.
The primary consideration here is lighting. Program your lights to turn on and off and random intervals during the night. Doing this will make someone think twice about entering your home.
7. Purchase Security Monitoring
You have a lot of work to do when you secure your home on your own. You can bypass much of that work by using a service from a security company.
When you’re looking for a security system, find someone that offers around the clock monitoring. Your security company should provide cameras, sensors, and have notifications for when one of your alarms is tripped.
They’ll give you a call to make sure everything is okay. If you don’t answer, your security provider will send the police to make sure nobody is burglarizing your home.
8. Watch Your Garage
People often forget their garage when securing their homes. It isn’t too difficult to make your house an unappealing target for thieves. Unfortunately, these people will head straight to your garage if you leave it unprotected.
Garages are a popular place to store valuable items, so it’s becoming a popular target for burglars. They can gain access through an unsecured car door or a backdoor you accidentally leave unlocked.
Make sure all doors are locked and consider adding extra locks to your mechanical door. If you’re still concerned about garage theft, think about buying a smart garage door opener. These devices connect to your home’s WiFi and will tell you if someone opens your door in the middle of the night.
Following Well-Known Security Tips Will Make Your Home Secure
It’s hard to understand the threat of property crime until it happens to you. Make sure you make use of the security tips above to make your home safe from those who would take advantage.
Once you make your home safe, you can start working on improving the other parts of your home. Read more of our blog to discover our best home improvement tips.