Single family homes are twice as likely to be burglarized as apartments, hotels or businesses. The most likely things to be stolen in a burglary are cash, small electronic equipment, home computers, cameras, jewellery, and tools.

Few people really bother about security until something happens to them or a neighbour. There are many things homeowners can do to make their home less of a target. Remember, the two things a burglar fears most are being seen and having to take too much time to complete the crime.

While burglars typically “target” a home when no one is home, if you surprise one in the act, your chances of being injured are too high to attempt to intervene. A sobering statistic shows many homeowners attempting to defend their home with a weapon end up having it turned on them.

 

Did You Know?

Many security companies will provide a free “walk through” of your property. The purpose is to identify all potential trouble spots and determine what steps can be implemented to improve the overall security of your property.

A few words of caution though; if you have a security company do a survey for you, this is their opportunity to get their foot in your door and try and sell you their security devices, which may not be a bad idea.

 

Dead Giveaways that say “No One is Home”

• Always closing the drapes ONLY when you’re not home.
• Newspapers piling up outside the front door
• Turning on front outside light that remains on for days

 

Top Tips and Deterrents

• Alarm sensors for windows and doors; many burglars will break a window before entering to see if you have an alarm; noise that neighbors could hear turns most burglars away.
• Exterior door should be at least 4-5 cms thick and any glass paneling should preferably be laminated safety glass.
• The best deterrent you can get is a menacing dog; close to 90 percent of convicted burglars say that a dog is not worth the time spent trying to break in.

 

Prevention First and Foremost

When thinking of what you can do to deter a burglar don’t consider the after effect, such as the burglar getting caught.

We all want the burglar to get caught; consider what you can do to stop them before they break into your home.

 

Stay safe fellow neighbours! In the meantime if you need any assistance with your Birkenhead home, please call me at 021 85 84 83 or email me at jason.yianakis@harcourts.co.nz.