According to FBI Uniform Crime Reports, Burglary offenses increased 1.3 percent in cities with 25,000 to 49,999 persons. Burglaries also increased in non-metropolitan counties by 1.2 percent.
It's a good idea to keep a weapon in your house to protect yourself and your family. I would highly recommend stun guns. Place several stun guns around the house so they are readily available, no matter where you are in your home when the burglary occurs. Stun guns are highly effective and accidental use of stun guns will not result in death like handguns or shotguns.
What Burglars look for:
1. If you don't close your blinds at night, they love looking in your windows to spot an expensive flat screen TV, computer, video games, etc.
2. Most burglars get in a house through the back door. Keep that in mind and keep it locked up at all times
3. If you have a fancy alarm system, do not forget to set it at all times, even when you are at home
4. If you leave that window open just a little bit during those warm summer days to let fresh air in, that might be an invitation to a burglar to come in too
5. Stop announcing your vacations on Facebook, MySpace etc. It's very easy to locate your address and other personal information
6. Having a loud dog in your house is a good idea, even if you have a great alarm system installed
7. Having nosy neighbors next door can be a great thing also. Talk to your neighbors and agree on keeping an eye on each others homes
8. Burglars look for newspapers piled up on your driveway or might leave a flyer in your front door to see how long it takes you to remove it
9. They never go to kids rooms to look for valuable things, so it might be a good idea to hide some things there
10. If you have a safe in your room, you need to bolt it down, otherwise your burglars might take it with them, since they don't have time to break into it
11. If it snows while you are out of town, get a neighbor to create car tracks in your driveway
12. Burglars always knocks first, so answer the door at all times. Otherwise they can get in your house while you are in there - surprise, surprise! And it can be quite dangerous.
13. While on vacation, I would recommend to leave a few lights on in the house and may be a radio also. It can be a better deterrent than your alarm system.
14. Crooks try their best to never look like crooks. They can dress like a cable guy, a sales person with a clip board or be dressed like a lawn guy.
15. Don't ever leave your door unlocked even if you just go to pick up the mail or take a short walk. As sad as it sounds, some of the robbers occasionally hit the jack pot and walk right in.
Burglary Prevention Tips
Make sure that all exterior doors have sturdy, well installed dead bolt locks. Regular key-in the knob locks alone are not enough.
Sliding glass doors can be secured by installing commercial locks or putting a broomstick handle or dowel in the inside track to jam the door. To prevent the door from being lifted off the track, drill a hole through the sliding door frame and the fixed frame and insert a pin in the hole.
Lock double-hung windows with key locks or "pin" your windows by drilling a small hole at a 45 degree angle between the inner and outer frames, then insert a nail that can be removed only from the inside.
Instead of hiding keys around the outside of your home, give a neighbor you trust an extra key for emergencies.
When you move into a new home re-key the locks on all exterior doors immediately.
Burglars hate bright lights. Install flood lighting to your homes exterior and keep them on at night or set them to detect motion around your home.
Don't hire strangers to cut your grass or perform work on your home. Burglars use these opportunities to find out what valuables you own and to learn how to break into your home when you're away.
Take regular walks in your neighborhood and make mental note of your surroundings. If something looks strange or out of place, call the police immediately.
When you're at home, look outside from your windows and do a quick inspection of the area and call the police if you see anything suspicious.
Call the police if you see a person tampering with doors and windows in your neighborhood. Your call to police may prevent a burglary in your neighborhood.
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