What is a safe and secure home worth? Does it seem like a home security system is too expensive for you? Are you always on the lookout for more affordable options? There actually are some, and they are within reach. The following article has some cheap ways to increase your home security.
Don’t give the keys to your home to a professional cleaner unless you trust them completely. If you plan on giving them the key so that they can work in your home for over an hour, make sure that they’re reputable, hardworking, and honest. Go over their references and do some background research on the company they work for. If you hire a cleaner from a company, then you should check the company with the BBB.
Buy a safe to contain everything of great value. If an intruder breaks into your home, at least these valuables will be secure. Keep the safe hidden somewhere remote.
Don’t allow anyone you don’t know to look into your house. No matter how innocent a person may seem or how interesting the product he or she may be offering, you must not allow access. Some people will knock on your door simply to see whether you have a security system.
Avoid being shy. Build up a rapport with the people who own homes close to yours. You’ll find that friendly neighbors make for a powerful support network. Keep an eye on their properties and they’ll respond in kind. Listen for gossip too. Important security details (like the presence of strangers in your neighborhood) can come out of the most innocent conversations.
Do you live outside the city? You might be less worried about home invasions than if you lived in an urban area. There are differences between large cities and homes located in the countryside. Others feel rural residents have a lower risk of being burglarized.
Walls are the perfect place to hide. Small valuables fit nicely inside walls. Use an old switch plate, outlet or phone jack. Anything not used currently makes a good spot for hiding.
You should change all the locks if you just bought or rented a new home. Even if the previous owner or tenant seems trustworthy, you have no way of knowing how many copies of the key they made and distributed. Bear in mind that other people may have lived in the home before the previous owner.
Having light on in your home at night will scare crooks away. Thieves don’t want to be visible. Good lighting in your home means that crooks have no hiding places. Keep the lights on if you want your home to be secure.
Look online for a reputable home security business. You can check out their packages and rates and also read some customer reviews. After reading about these services, you can narrow down the results and use appointments for price comparisons.
Before signing up for home security, find out how long they’ve been in business. Companies that have been around for awhile show that they can provide reliable support. You may not feel as safe if you opt to go with a company that has not been in business for long or that does not have a stable history.
Light up your home’s exterior. Thieves prefer to work in darkness. Install lights in areas where intruders might come. This includes doorways, windows, and your garage.
If you don’t have a paper shredder, you might want to buy one. A thief looking through your discarded papers can find a lot of information you do not want them to have. They may even learn your schedule, so they can burgle your home while you are away. If a shredder is too expensive, at least tear relevant paperwork into small bits.
Are your house numbers visible from the street? During an emergency crisis, smaller numbers prevent emergency personnel from finding your home quickly. If you notice a problem, you should be able to fix it fairly cheaply, though.
If you’ve got guests that you don’t want in particular areas of the home, close the area off so it is not accessible. Install key-less locks instead. These locks use codes instead of keys. Install them yourself or get a local home security company to do that.
Ask about the various contract lengths offered by a home security company. There are advantages and disadvantages to each. A long contract may lock you in even if you choose to sell the house or want to stop the services, but it can result in a lower bill every month. Shorter contracts have more freedom, but the monthly costs could be higher.
Home security is largely based on what you are able to afford. Use the inexpensive methods of securing your home if you cannot afford the more expensive ones. This article should have presented a number of tips that you can use to make your home more secure. They might just do the trick.
