Do you value home security? Do you think that home security packages are out of your budget? Do you long for more economic choices? Thankfully, now there are! This article contains some inexpensive home security tips.

You should only provide a house cleaner your key if you completely trust them. You need to ensure that they are honest and reputable according to references before you have handed over the key. Do a background check on them. If your cleaning person comes from a company, check with the BBB.

Make sure your home appears occupied. You could purchase timers and have your TVs, lights, radios and other types of electronics to go on at various times. This way, your house will always look occupied. This is an excellent technique that helps avoid robberies while keeping the property safe.

Buy a safe to keep all of your valuables in one place at home. A safe is the best way to protect your diamonds, gold and important documents. Hide your safe in a place that is hard to get to, like a basement closet or an attic.

If you like to have a key hidden in case you lose yours, place it in a safe place. Hiding it beneath the doormat is very common and most intruders will look there. Try hiding the key in your outside dog’s collar.

Do you have a dog that stays in your yard when you’re not at home? Store the spare key with them. Stash the key on the pup’s collar to keep it out of sight. This is very effective if your pet is afraid of strangers; therefore, burglars are not very likely to notice the key.

Get advice from loved ones about home security systems. Others have likely had both good and bad experiences that they can share with you that can then save you a lot of stress and time. By asking around, you will gain information about the pros and cons of a variety of options.

Before leaving for vacation, turn off the ringers in your house. If the phone continues to ring while you’re gone, this lets an intruder know that the home is empty.

If you retain a space key for when you get locked out, consider the place you hide it carefully. Common places to hide a spare key are above your door frame or underneath your doormat. Therefore, thieves are more likely to check these places out first. A better place to keep your key is inside your outside dog’s collar.

Don’t open your door when strangers are knocking. Burglars have many clever ways to convince householders to open the door. Create the rule that you just open a door to people that you expect to arrive.

Make sure to have your home inspection system maintained on at least an annual basis. Your security company should send a representative to check your system. There are any number of problems that can cause malfunctions in your security system, from weather damage to animal activity. You may not be able to tell there is an issue by yourself.

You should never give details about your vacations and other plans on social networks. If you do, burglars will know you’re not home and strike.

It’s a good idea to have motion sensor lights installed. When a person walks by your home too closely, these lights will go on. These lights will not only let you know when someone gets too close, they will also stop potential burglars from breaking in. After all, burglars don’t want anyone to know they are there. Make sure you regularly change the light bulbs to ensure they continue to work properly.

Walls are great for hiding things. If you need to protect expensive items in your home, put them inside the walls. All you have to do is place them behind any unused phone jack, electrical outlet or switch plate. You can easily install fake unused plates.

Ask your friends for advice before you choose a home security system or company. Your friends have gone through both bad and good experiences and they will be able to share them with you. Ask a number of people to get a several different opinions.

Get creative and hide valuables inside your walls. You don’t have to cut out pieces of the wall to do this. There are lots of places around the home that have pre-cut areas that you can use. Remove the wires from an electric socket you do not use so you can hide your valuable jewelry.

Home security does depend on what exactly you can afford. If you cannot afford expensive systems, you can try the inexpensive methods to increase your home’s safety. Apply all the tips you read in this article to keep your family safe. They may be the best, most effective bargain ever.

Make sure the ringer on any phones in your home is turned off when you leave for vacation. If your phone is ringing while you are out, burglars will realize that no one is home, making your home very vulnerable to an attack during your time away.