Protecting your home/valuables from thieves

Belldandy16 · Post by **Belldandy16** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 4:42 pm

Today our neighbor's house was broken into.
she lives accross the street from us and at 10 (AM- NOT PM, AM) when she went to the grocery store her house was broken into.
and i was here today right across the street when all this was going on (my window faces the street and i can see her house from here) and i was on my computer all morning!

it amazes me because this woman, she lives alone, she locks her gate 24/7, at night she has her outside lights on, there arent any bushes on her property for people to sneak around in. I mean she does practically everything to protect herself and her house.

UGH. and it was a kid too... the cops said that the hole that they got in was so small only a young person could fit through it.

well, getting back to my point....
this poor lady did everything she could to protect her house (short of having an alarm system) but it was still broken into.

and i was thinking about us, we are in practically the same situation (we just had one of our cars broken into about six months ago).

so now im thinking, "omgosh, what can we do to protect ourselves???"... b/c it could have been us. I was home (and my window faces her house) during this entire time!

ive always watched that "To catch a thief" show but never figured it happen in my neighborhood!

we dont keep our valuables in our house (well except for my computer and our electronics) but i was thinking, is there a way to protect these things from thieves?
ive heard that there is something that you can do to your computer if it is ever stolen (like having it engraved or something)?

Can anyone give me any tips on protecting my home and (electronic) valuables?
we dont have anything really valuable except for my comptuer and my cels!

(and id be devastated if i lost either!)

thanks alot!

zerospace · Post by **zerospace** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 5:43 pm

One of the easiest things you can do is to make it difficult for anyone to know/tell when you're home (if you can, park all cars in the garage, or as many as will fit). This way someone can't watch your house and see "oh gee, all the cars are gone, so they must not be home." Granted, if someone watches you long enough, they'll figure out when to break in. In that event, your best defense is to make your home difficult to break into.

There's a TV show called "It takes a thief" ... you might want to check it out. They give advice on how to better secure your home.

Probably the most obvious thing would be to install a home security system -- they aren't terribly expensive to install these days (though monitoring will cost you monthly). We have a security system in our house, and I don't know how I ever did without one. I certainly feel better about leaving my house for days at a time knowing that if anyone breaks in (even if I leave my front door unlocked!), I'll get a phone call from my monitoring company and the police.

Ms. Poe · Post by **Ms. Poe** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:18 pm

A dog for when I'm away...and a shotgun and my dog for when I'm home.

I keep my cels in a hidden drawer under my bed. So they won't be looking for it when they come in if I'm not home. They usually grab things in plain sight, and don't try to uncover hidden boxes or storage areas...Unless they know it's there...

Ryouko · Post by **Ryouko** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:54 pm

I've been really worried about this since I'll be moving out on my own to an apartment in February. My unit comes with a security system, thankfully. But I don't know how much of a deterrent it will be if someone is really determined.

Cloud · Post by **Cloud** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:54 pm

Huh. Have you tried searching the Internet?

ReiTheJelly · Post by **ReiTheJelly** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 8:25 pm

I recommend an alarm system - especially since you'll get better rates on your insurance and it'll deter most thieves. They're really not that expensive, all things considered. Certainly less hassle than getting a guard dog and much less violent than buying a shotgun

Cloud · Post by **Cloud** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 8:25 pm

Do you think they ever could be?

Sugarflower · Post by **Sugarflower** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:19 pm

I'll share my experience about this subject.

10 years ago my apartment was broken into and all electronic valuables plus my purse were stolen. I was living with a boyfriend in Atlanta, GA at the time, back when I was fresh out of high school and naive to the world. That evening we were going to do some laundry at the local laundromat and I noticed our creepy next door neighbor watching us as we took several bags of the laundry out to the vehicle.

When we returned an hour and a half later our door (locked with a deadbolt) had been kicked and busted in. That was the most terrifying night with very little sleep that I had ever had. The thief(s) were never caught but to this day I place the blame on our neighbor. Also, to this day every time I come home (no matter where I've lived these last 10 years since the incident) I get anticipation of hoping all is well before I walk up to my apartment door and checking my apartment door to see if it's ajar before I enter it. It totally sucks not feeling safe and secure all because of one incident that happened 10 years ago. Sadly, it's something I've never let go and don't know if I'll ever feel security again.

Incidentally, my purse that was stolen was intentionally left at the apartment as I was afraid it might get stolen at the laundromat.

It contained my ATM card, checkbook, social security card, birth certificate copy, and who else knows what was all in there. I had to immediately close my bank account BUT the thief managed to use my checks in the southern part of the state and Jacksonville, FL. at many Wal-mart locations and a few other stores for purchases of hundreds of dollars worth of items. It was so annoying having to get signed affidavits from my bank to prove the account had been long closed and that the checks were stolen. Thankfully no one has tried to use my SS card that I am aware of. I try to get yearly credit reports to keep an eye out for any fraudulent activity.

Back to that night of the robbery and to the main point of me giving some advice.

The police officer who came to file the report recommended that in the future we might want to keep a record of all valuable items and serial numbers/receipts in case anything were to happen again in the future. This way if the creeps try to pawn or sell your items to any retailers/stores you will have proof that those were your items. I highly recommend this.

I've been living in my home state for a few years now and, sadly, there are a high number of thieves in this county and the neighboring counties, especially this past year has been bad. Specific retailers who take gaming items, dvds, etc and also pawn shops give cash to these people who are looking to make an easy buck for their 'habits'. It's pitiful. And please remember that if anything like this were to ever happen to you, god forbid, do file a police report and make sure to get a copy of it. This is also proof you will need in helping to possibly retrieving any of your stolen items.

Wendy · Post by **Wendy** » Tue Dec 23, 2008 3:17 am

Ms. Poe wrote:I keep my cels in a hidden drawer under my bed. So they won't be looking for it when they come in if I'm not home.

Unless they read this thread...

Like I did

....Go forth my ninja's and bringeth back treasure for thy master!!

Ryouko · Post by **Ryouko** » Tue Dec 23, 2008 6:23 am

I definitely plan to get renter's insurance for my apartment, seeing as I'm a big gamer who loves my big hd tv. ^_^; The main reason I even took this place was because it also offered the security system for no added fee. It still makes me nervous, though. I am more terrorfied of someone coming into my apartment while I'm still in there rather than my place being cleaned out while I'm gone.

Not Sir Phobos · Post by **Not Sir Phobos** » Tue Dec 23, 2008 3:41 pm

Ryouko wrote:I definitely plan to get renter's insurance for my apartment, seeing as I'm a big gamer who loves my big hd tv. ^_^; The main reason I even took this place was because it also offered the security system for no added fee. It still makes me nervous, though. I am more terrorfied of someone coming into my apartment while I'm still in there rather than my place being cleaned out while I'm gone.

This is why you should own a shotgun. It is the best tool for removing goblins that scare you in the night.

Aside from that issue. The best way to protect yourself is a security system, locks high and low on each door, double locks on all windows, 24 hour surveillance, all trees and brush cleared back at least 100 feet around the perimiter of your house, halogen flood lights, a rotweiler, and having your local sheriff make your street part of their high traffic patrol areas.

Or you can just realize that sometimes in your life the evil in the world will be determined enough to affect your peace. There are sites online that charge a decent fee to back up your hard drive, because lets face it, the information is what's important, not the physical computer. For your cells or other valuables get a browning gun safe, they are super secure, fireproof, and not too pricey.

Wendy · Post by **Wendy** » Wed Dec 24, 2008 1:30 am

Not Sir Phobos wrote:This is why you should own a shotgun. It is the best tool for removing goblins that scare you in the night.

Sure, and your child can borrow it to finally blow away his classmates that where picking on him at school!

You know..the two birds and one stone principle.

Cloud · Post by **Cloud** » Wed Dec 24, 2008 1:30 am

What makes it the best?

Ryouko · Post by **Ryouko** » Wed Dec 24, 2008 9:07 am

I am deathy afraid of guns, so there's no way I would ever own one. ^_^; I would get a dog, but I'm not a dog person at all. >_>;; I would really like to look into getting a stun gun though, if they are legal. But I WILL be always sure to have my pepper spray. ;)

Not Sir Phobos · Post by **Not Sir Phobos** » Wed Dec 24, 2008 9:46 am

Wendy wrote:
Not Sir Phobos wrote:This is why you should own a shotgun. It is the best tool for removing goblins that scare you in the night.
Sure, and your child can borrow it to finally blow away his classmates that where picking on him at school!

You know..the two birds and one stone principle.

Ah ok, so you are completely unknowledgeable on the subject. Thank you for your input.