Homeowners must assume the serious responsibility of home safety. Alarm systems are not the only way to keep your home safe and secure. Continue reading for some expert tips on making your home a safer place.

Always have the locks changed when you buy a new home. You don’t know who might have a key. Changing the locks will give you peace of mind that you and your family are the only ones who have access to your home. This is also the thing to do if you lose the keys.

Home security plans have other features along with an alarm that goes off during a break-in. Most security systems can facilitate alarm sounds anyone enters. Parents riding herd on small children will be thankful for this feature which makes it harder for kids to sneak outside without supervision.

Don’t give the keys to your home to a professional cleaner unless you trust them completely. Anyone you give the keys to your home to should be unarguably honest. Be sure to make sure their references check out. If the house cleaner is employed by a company, check with the BBB of your area to determine their reputation.

Spare Key

Before leaving for vacation, turn off the ringers in your house. 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.

Do you have an outside dog? This pet may be an excellent storing spot for your spare key. Put it on your dog’s collar, making sure it is hidden. This is the perfect place to store a spare key, especially if your dog doesn’t care for strangers.

Be sure your roof, floors, and ceiling are fire resistant. This is a good way to protect your home against fires, for instance if you live near power lines or in a dry area. It’s best to prevent a fire before it starts.

In the summertime, you should rid your yard of dead bushes and vegetation. They pose a fire risk. Therefore, you need to regularly clean your yard so that your home is protected.

Social networking sites are great for keeping in touch, but post information sparingly. For example, you might avoid broadcasting when you are going out of town, especially if your friends list contains casual acquaintances. It’s exciting going to new places and enjoying your time, but you could alert thieves to an empty home that they can easily break into.

It is always best to not let people in that just show up out of the blue. This includes a salesperson or people looking for help. It’s quite possible that your charming guest is only interested in evaluating the security of your home; if they find it lacking, they may be back later to relieve you of some of your possessions.

Request information from your local law enforcement agencies about home protection packages. There are plenty of things that can be done, from a safety walk to cataloging expensive items to help protect your investment and your family. Call and see what is available.

Check out your garage to ensure that it is secure. Intruders could easily break into your garage and access your home. You can use a C-clamp to secure the door and prevent it from being opened by strangers.

If you’ve got a garage, boost home security just by using it for only a car instead of storage. Protect your car from vandals by keeping it in the garage. Hiding it will help to deter people from tracking the times you aren’t there.

The walls are a perfect hiding place. Hide valuables inside of your walls. Just open up an electrical outlet or a phone jack that is not in use. If you don’t have unused plates, it’s easy to put in a fake one.

Changing your locks first can help make your home much more secure. As time passes, keys end up getting into the wrong hands. This doesn’t usually cost much, and it can be accomplished in less than a day.

If you do not reside in a big city, you may not worry as much about home burglaries. With neighbors so far away, it may seem like a tiny risk. Others think that rural places have less of a chance of being targets for burglars.

You could hide some valuables within your walls. You don’t have to cut pieces out of the walls. There are many spots in your home that already have areas that are pre-cut. What about un-wiring an electrical socket which isn’t used to utilize as a cover to hide your jewelry?

You never want people to be able to see your valuables from outside of your home. A big front window gives you a good view; however, it also gives burglars a good view of the interior of your house. If your windows face a street, be sure they’re always covered and have your valuables safe.

Check someone’s references carefully before letting them come into your home. Perform a background check to learn about their criminal history, too. It is not a good idea to give anyone a key to your home, even contractors or repairmen.

Be sure your valuables are not visible from the outside of your house. It may be great to have large windows with a view, but this means that people can look in. Cover all street-facing windows.

When you consider a security company, be certain you read the details and fine print of the contract you’re about to sign. There may be hidden costs to doing business with them, including early termination fees and surprising equipment costs. You’ll want to avoid any surprises so be sure and read your contract carefully.

Having your house lit up during the night is a good way to scare intruders. That’s because they want to remain hidden. When you have a well-lit home, crooks won’t be able to hide and it will be hard for them to break in undetected. Secure your property by creating a well-lit area.

If your home security system is installed, be sure its wires are well-hidden. You do not want the wires exposed for easy manipulation. Don’t make it easier for them, so have wires hidden in the house’s walls or buried. You will be much safer.

Keep safety at the forefront when landscaping your property. There should be no plants or greenery in front of doors or windows. No one can easily break into a window which everyone can see. Landscaped features should be set further away for safety, yet keeping beauty in mind.

Discuss various contracts offered by any home security provider you are exploring. Each likely has its benefits and drawbacks. Longer contracts may offer more affordable monthly payments; however, it may be hard to cancel that contract should you decide to change services or sell your house. A shorter contract gives you more freedom, but it may cost you more per month.

Were you aware that your home’s wires are valuable? Some intruders could strip your home of every bit of copper. A skilled intruder could remove all the copper from your home within less than an hour. Be sure to hide your wires or make sure they are hard to get to.

Don’t keep your car registration in the glove box of your car. This isn’t smart because that information contains your home address. Keep them in your wallet or in another safe place like your trunk. Make sure you can easily and quickly access them in the event that a police officer pulls you over.

Think about hard-wired security systems if you’re worried about long term maintenance costs. While wireless systems are great, they do require batteries on a consistent basis. If you don’t replace the batteries, you’ll find that your system stops working correctly. Furthermore, it can be costly to replace multiple batteries.

When allowing a representative from any security company to enter your home, look for someone in uniform and ask to see an identification. Many thieves use this tactic to enter a house. This proves rather dangerous for both your family and also your valuables. Be careful to avoid any potential dangers.

After having read these tips, you should now feel much safer. Although home security might appear to be a complicated issue, it is crucial that you utilize home-security strategies in order to protect your home and family. The tips in this article should help you accomplish just that.