Everyone wants to know the most cost effective way to protect their home from burglars. There are so many security systems on the market, with a range of capabilities going from simple motion sensor alarms all the way up to outdoor wireless security camera systems with motion recognition software that can tell if someone is approaching and notify you automatically over the internet or cell network. Such systems cost an arm and a leg and, truth be told, unless you have a very large home with lots of valuables to protect they only offer diminishing returns of protection for your investment. It’s easy to spend $10,000 dollars on such equipment and still not have top of the range. There are more cost effective ways of decreasing your chances of being robbed. Even the best security systems can be breached so really we are talking about playing the percentages when we want to deter burglars.
First, get the free and easy solutions working. By this I mean, always lock your door not matter how short the time you think you’ll be away. Second, when you are out make sure you leave the radio or TV on. Leave lights on and better still put them on a cheap timer so they can come on automatically if you’re going to be out in the evening. Make sure you have window locks as well as door locks. And finally, look out for your neighbours and ask them to do the same for you. These simple steps are mostly common sense but common sense is not that common and many burglars come about because these simple precautions are overlooked.
There’s nothing wrong with high tech solutions but start with the basics here too. Security lights make good deterrents and a simple home alarm with a clearly visible alarm box tells the burglar you have some protection when maybe your neighbours does not.
