Secure your home for the holidays

While many retailers are vowing to fight the Christmas Creep this year, you likely found holiday ribbon just steps away from a Marvel costume. As you work to compile an active to do list in preparation for the season, we want to be sure a few unconventional items make it to your list. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) estimates that over 400,000 burglaries occur between November and December. Let's make sure you home is not in the sights of home invaders this holiday season.

To Monitor or Secure?

Most burglaries occur between the hours of 10:00AM and 3:00PM. If you have a home monitoring or security system you’ve taken some great defensive measures. If you have not yet invested in one of these we strongly advise you to reconsider. In a survey of those convicted of theft, 60% say the presence of a security system drastically impacted their plans to invade a residence (UNC, 2012).

It is important to understand the difference between home monitoring vs. home security systems. While most security systems today offer monitoring as an option in addition to alerting authorities, there are some home monitoring systems that will only assist you in keeping an eye on your home. Watch dogs alert and guard dogs take action.

The question you must ask yourself: Am I ok with having access to cameras that help me keep an eye on the inside/outside of my home OR do I need a system to alert authorities the second someone has breached the thresholds of my residence? Consider researching all the security systems in the market and weight their services to determine what will work best for you. Price can be a factor, consider seasonal promotions and retail carriers that may offer sales and discounts on some of this software/hardware.

About the Lights

Take a second away from checking last years Christmas lights! A front porch and back deck light will no longer deter criminals. You may want to consider strategically lighting your home. While there are many services and apps that allow for controlling your lights away from home (awesome!), you may also want to consider simply placing some lights on a timer. Dusk til dawn and lights with motion sensors may also be effective.

Door to Door?

Are we still selling and promoting door to door? While close knit communities may have the occasional friendly neighbor that stops by it is rare that most residence’s will have an unexpected visitor ringing the doorbell. Don’t feel required to answer that knock at your door. In 3 out of every 10 burglaries someone is actually home (Bureau of Justice Statistics). 34% of home invaders actually enter by way of the front door (Assoc. of Home Inspectors, 2017). More importantly being alerted that activity is occurring outside or inside your home can be an added measure of defense.

Through the Looking Glass

Can someone see into your windows? If so, what will they see?? 30% of home invaders enter the home through an unlocked window (SafeGuardTheWorld, 2017). Consider what windows need to be secured and covered. With the rise in drone ownership, there has also been an increase in drones utilized to survey property for potential burglary. Because of this, don't develop a false sense of security with upper level floors - consider that home invaders now have wings.

Bite Your Tongue

Sharing goods new, gripes, and updates via social media is a new normal. However, you may want to be a little more mum on your travel plans and holiday activities. Less obvious might be your homes voicemail. Experts encourage us to consider rolling your calls over to a mobile device while away. Sometimes a phone that rings endlessly, which may have otherwise been answered more frequently can be a small sign that no one is home. For those 'talkative folk', consider minimizing your home away details to those friends and family close to you that may offer a watchful eye to protecting your property while away. It is advised to discuss this with your children as well.

Secure Your Stuff

How secure are the prized possessions in your home? The FBI reports that the average dollar loss per burglary is over $2,000. In addition to this, barely 13% of burglaries actually result in an arrest. While statistics show that burglars head to your master bedroom first, most homes have a plethora of goodies along the way. Given that the average invader is successful at getting what they want in 10 minutes (Safewise, 2017) don’t make it easy on them. Maybe you need to find hiding places or consider purchasing a large safe. You may also want to consider discontinuing those external hiding places for keys and garage openers and placing them directly in the hands of trusted individuals.

The Disposal Prophecy

A trash receptacle tells many tales. Certainly you have heard (and hopefully taken heed) the warning of not dropping what’s left of your Christmas goodies by the trash for all to see. Consider disposal of all packaging (with signage or without) at a location away from your front yard. Leaving your trash out before a pick up and leaving your trash bin out after a pick up can be an indicator that no one is home. Consider asking a trustful neighbor or supportive friend to roll your garbage in and out. You may also want to consider removing all garbage from the home prior to your departure.

On a large scale burglary across the united states has been on the decline (1970s peak). However a home is invaded every 15 seconds and someone will be a new victim. Remember, Burglary involves breaking and entering a structure with the intent to commit a crime and a Robbery is defined as the theft of property or money through the threat of violence (A Secure Life, 2017). A Robbery can occur while you are at home and away. Secure your home and take precautions to protect your person as well. While this topic is never pleasant, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of heartache and grief. Here’s to you having having a safe and happy holiday season.