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Almost every home in every neighborhood is a target for burglary, whether you live in the city or in the country. Today most families have valuables that attract burglars such as televisions, stereos, cash, and computers.
A 1996 study by the Justice Department says that an average family has a one in four chance of being the victim of a serious crime each year. Even worse, burglary is often compounded by violence. Luckily, many home security companies have over fifty years of experience helping protect families like yours from burglary.
The best tips that can be found to help you protect your family and your home include security systems, which are offered at four levels of deterrence. The first is a yard sign from a security company that a burglar can see from the street so that he chooses another house. The second is warning decals so that if the burglar misses the yard sign, then they will see the decals in the windows. The third is a loud siren that would sound off loudly when ever an intruder breaks in. The final one is a twenty four hour monitoring system that can notify the authorities to be dispatched to your home if an alarm is received.
There are some more helpful tips that could help prevent a burglar from attacking your home. If exterior doors are hollow core, then you should replace them with solid wood, fiberglass or steel. Make sure exterior door hinges are on the inside rather than the outs
ide where an intruder can remove the pins and pull the door out of the frame. If you have double hung windows, then bolt the upper and lower sashes together or insert a metal bar in the track to prevent opening.
To secure sliding glass doors you should add a bolt lock or use a charley bar to block the door closed. Use bars to secure basement or garage doors and add bars to basement windows. Most home burglaries occur between eight in the morning and five at night, so get in the habit of always locking all doors and windows whenever you go out. You may also want to invest in some high quality, name brand deadbolt locks for all exterior doors. If you have a double cylinder deadbolt that is operated by a key both inside and out, keep the key near the door so every family member can find it and exit quickly in case of fire.
Alarm systems are an effective deterrent. Nine out of ten convicted burglars agree that they would avoid a house protected by an alarm system. Security system decals and signs are also an effective deterrent. According to the FBI, more burglaries occur in the months of July and August than in any other months. Make sure your security system includes a loud inside alarm, detectors at all exterior doors, and motion sensors in the master bedroom and main living areas. Never leave an answering machine message indicating you are not at home, instead just say you can't come to the phone at this time.
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