How to Look for Ways to Protect Homes From Burglars

Keeping your home safe from intruders is a critical element of protecting both your belongings and your family members. Burglars normally look for homes with obvious weak points and exploit those weaknesses. Addressing possible weaknesses makes a potential burglar less likely to rob your home, as he may feel the payoff does not reflect the increased effort or chance of being caught. Find ways to protect your home by looking for obvious weak spots in your home security.

Instructions

1. Identify home or landscaping features that can help a burglar sneak around your property without being noticed. For instance, overgrown shrubs provide perfect cover for a potential thief. Trim shrubs and trees regularly to preserve visibility.

2. Take a walk around your house and note if you can see any valuables from the street or yard. Keep window blinds closed to prevent burglars from spotting high-value items.

3. Perform a lighting check. Wait until it gets dark and look for unlit areas around your home and lawn that could provide hiding spaces for burglars. Your home should be well lit at night to discourage criminals. Add motion-sensitive lights to the sides and rear of your house and ensure your driveway and main sidewalk are always well lit.

4. Pretend you are a burglar and try to find simple ways to get into your house. Your front door may be locked, but if you have a large glass sliding door or low-hanging windows, you may need to take additional security steps such as reinforced sliding door brackets, window bars and specially designed patio door locks.

5. Look at your house the next time everyone leaves. If your house looks empty, leave a light on to convey the illusion that someone is always home. Put lights and radios on automatic timers or leave them on when you go out.

References

• State Farm: Protect yourself against home burglary
• Bankrate: 9 ways to prevent home burglary