In the spirit of the 12 days of Christmas and similar good cheer, Lowder New Homes is happy to bring you more than a few suggestions that should help you and your family rest a little easier should you decide to leave your home in order to celebrate this holiday season elsewhere.
1. Take the time to walk around the exterior of your entire house, looking for open blinds or curtains that may offer a tempting view of items inside your house. If you do find some windows that present an unnecessary temptation to a would-be burglar and there are no blinds or curtains, consider putting something in the window to obstruct the view, such as cardboard or draping a sheet inside, over the window.
2. Take a walk around the interior of your house and double check each door and window making sure all locks are secure. An unlocked door handle (even if the deadbolt is locked) or a partially locked window can be seen as a weak point of entry to an burglar.
3. Remember to block pet doors. Thieves know to look for doggie doors and cat doors. Find a way to block that door with a heavy object. A piece of plywood placed flush against the pet door with a heavy chair or other sturdy object can be an effective deterrent.
4. Check your flood lights and other outdoor lights to make sure they are all working, and leave them on. While some people fear a light left on during the day is a giveaway, it is much more advantageous for a burglar to work under the cover of darkness at night.
5. If number four is bothering you, invest in a timer and put one on your TV to turn on at night and off during the day. Add one to a lamp here and there throughout your home too. The appearance of activity in a house is always a good strategy for preventing a break-in.
6. Ask your neighbor to collect your mail and newspaper deliveries, or ask the service to halt deliveries. This is an important preventative measure.
7. If it snows (it happens sometimes in Alabama), ask a neighbor to walk in the snow right up to your front door. Tracks in your yard can be a smart way to show activity at home.
8. Take a few minutes to collect your most important valuables like expensive jewelry and laptop computers and hide them somewhere in your home away from windows and heat. Placing such items in a box and putting them in a closet is a good way to protect them.
9. The big dog bluff. You might not own a big dog, but a stranger doesn’t know that. Find an extremely large bowl and write a scary name on it like “Fang” and leave it near a side or back door. Also effective are “Beware of the Dog” signs or large dog bones left in the yard.
10. Have a quick chat with your neighbors, letting them know when you’ll be home. Clarify that anyone going in and out of your house is not OK and a moving van is definitely wrong. Leave your neighbors a phone number to reach you, or an email, in case they need to contact you.
11. Some local police stations have a vacation notice program. Such programs allow citizens to call the police station and ask for routine drive-bys.
12. If you can, leave a car in the driveway. A car is one of the best ways to suggest that someone is home.
