Every homeowner should do everything possible to protect their homes. Home invasions are becoming very common, and other thing like flood and fire can damage your home. Read on to learn some useful advice to keep your family and home safe from nearly any threat.

Be sure your home appears to always be occupied. You can purchase timers that can control your household electronics such as lights, TVs and radios. This makes it look as though people are home no matter what. This is just one of the many precautions you can take to secure your home.

Your dog can actually safeguard a spare key. This approach is useful if your dog is a large breed that lives outdoor, or if your house has a doggy door. Just place your key on your dog’s collar.

When you buy a new house, change the locks. You’re not aware of any copies that have been made by the previous owners of the house. Changing the locks will give you peace of mind that you and your family are the only ones who have access to your home. Give a key to someone you trust in case you get locked out.

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. All references should be checked. If you hire a cleaner from a company, then you should check the company with the BBB.

When you buy a new home, be sure to have the locks changed. It’s important to know everyone who has a key to your home. Changing the locks will give you peace of mind that you and your family are the only ones who have access to your home. If you lose your keys, you should do the same thing.

A spare key must be carefully hidden and not in the obvious spots that a person might think. Placing a key above a door or under a doormat is quite obvious! Try hiding your key on a lawn statue or in a potted plant.

You should talk to your friends and family about advice concerning certain home security companies. 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. Ask around so you’ll have as much advice as you need in order to make a sound decision.

A home security system has other features in addition to sounding an alarm when there is a break-in. Many systems can alert you whenever anyone has entered your home. This can be valuable to parents with small children as they are made aware their child has opened or closed a door.

Avoid opening the door if you don’t know who is standing on the other side. People you do not know could have bad intentions or want to get an idea of how many valuable objects you own. Create the rule that you just open a door to people that you expect to arrive.

If you’ve got a garage, make sure to use it for your car rather than extra storage space. You will not have to worry about thieves taking your car if it is inside your garage. This will also make it more difficult for burglars to track when you away from home.

Get advice from your friends before selecting a provider for home security. There are likely people you know that have had either good or bad experiences with these companies. Make sure to ask neighbors for advice too.

Hide any valuables in wall spaces. It is not necessary to cut out pieces from your wall. There are many locales that are already around your home. For instance, consider using an electricity socket that is unused, and stash your precious jewelry in there.

Do that put spare keys above door frames or under door mats. You are allowing people to invade your home when you make it easy for them. Thieves are tricky, diabolical, and familiar with any and every hiding place. If you have a neighbor you can trust, have them hold your extra key.

When dealing with companies that install home security systems, it’s important to trust your gut. If the installers give you the heebie-jeebies, it’s not a good sign. Ask for someone else to come out or switch companies. Your security system is supposed to help you, not cause you more stress.

Homeowners should do everything under their power to make their home safe. In this article, you will find excellent information on making your home secure and keeping your family safe. Use all of the ideas here to maximize the amount of safety you have.