Gone are the days that you can leave your door unlocked and you can still expect to be safe. Sadly, times have changed. Having no home security system and compromising safety can spell the difference between life and death. According to the FBI, an estimated 8,632,512 property crime offenses were committed in the U.S. in 2013. Burglary accounted for 22.3 percent of those crimes.

Now is not the time to compromise your home safety.

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Charles Sczuroski, senior trainer for the National Crime Prevention Council and a former police officer, says that “With the national economy getting worse, burglary is again becoming a more common crime.” With more people getting desperate for cash and property, you shouldn’t expect burglary and breaking-in incidents to abate anytime soon. If you’re still not doing anything to secure your home from burglary, this should serve as a wake-up call to install home security systems for your property.

Trends in Home Security

Home security trends have evolved over the past few years. The technology is constantly improving and sold at more affordable prices, enabling more families to set up security systems for their homes. You don’t have to be rich to be able to afford a decent security system. You don’t have to own a sprawling estate just to feel the need to secure your home. Every homeowner, regardless of budget capabilities, can afford to get basic home upgrades to secure their properties.

Wireless technology is obviously the biggest change in home security systems. The wireless revolution allows easier installation of alarm systems. It eliminates the need to drill holes or install running wires in walls. It also allows homeowners to have more access to monitoring points, making it easier to ensure the alarm systems can’t be tampered with.

Another major trend in home security that emerged in the past few years is camera and video technology. Now you can easily monitor your home using your computer or smartphone. You can effortlessly check if there’s someone outside your home or if your children have arrived safely at your house. Video cameras have become unbelievably cheaper, making it more accessible even for homeowners on strict budgets.

Anti-burglary is not the only benefit of today’s more sophisticated alarm systems. You can also control your house’s thermostat, electrical outlets, lights, and home entertainment systems. Not only will this guarantee the safety of your home, it also grants you the convenience that will make household maintenance more efficient.

Today’s home security systems do more than just detect burglars.

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How to Secure Your Home and Make It Safe for Your Family

If you know nothing about home improvement for your security, it’s time to learn some rules in protecting your property.

Keep the shrubbery trimmed

If you don’t have a gardener working for you, it’s easy to forget that your shrubs and bushes have become wild and overgrown. Not only can this become an eyesore, it can also serve as hiding places for burglars and other criminal types who want to break in to your home. Pay special attention to bushes and shrubs underneath your windows, doors, and porches. Your neighbors and people passing through the street should be able to view your house so that they can report any unusual activity in your area.

Make good use of curtains and blinds

Keeping your windows open all the time is like giving the burglars the chance to see what they can steal from you. Protect your privacy by putting curtains, drapes, blinds, and other window dressings. Don’t give burglars the chance to check out your stuff or monitor your activities from the outside.

Be discreet about your new purchases

We all have those boxes and wrappers that come with each new item we purchase. Most of us just carelessly dump these in the trash to be picked up by the garbage truck. Stop this practice now and make an effort to dispose of these materials in a more secure manner. By checking out your trash, burglars can easily tell what you have in your house. Throwing boxes out carelessly can reveal that you just bought a flat-screen TV or a laptop computer.

Install motion sensors in your house

Lighting scares the burglars away, so make sure you have enough of it around your house. Installing motion sensors is a great way to detect people that may be lurking around your property. The system gets activated when it senses motion and will produce bright lights that will surprise the lurker and alarm the homeowner of unwanted elements outside the house.

Set timers that will activate lights and appliances

Burglars will most likely just walk away if they sense there’s somebody in the house. If your abode is empty much of the time, installing these timers can help create the illusion that there’s somebody in the house. You can set these timers to turn on lights, the radio or TV. This is especially important during nighttime, when most burglars go for their potential break-ins.

Install deadbolts

There are newer ways to lock doors.

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Sophisticated locks should be one of your priorities when you move into your new home. Deadbolts should have a throw of at least one inch and installed on every exterior entry door in the house. A double cylinder lock is the best option, which allows you to lock the doors on both sides. These locks should be placed on doors with glass portions or those situated near windows. This will prevent burglars from entering the house even if they break the glass and try to open the doors.

Beef up your alarm system

If your alarm system consists of just a single whiny alarm that will go off when the door is opened, then it’s time to re-evaluate your options and do some home security upgrades. Burglars are getting smarter and can trick their way into seemingly primitive alarm systems. There are affordable alarm systems that come with a keypad and separate control panel. $100 is enough to give you decent alarm systems that can provide adequate protection for your home. Of course, spending more for sophisticated alarm systems is never a bad idea. Shelling out $1,000 is just a small price to pay for your peace of mind.

You should never compromise your family’s safety. Installing home security systems in your home should happen when you move into your house, but if you haven’t done it yet, you should make amends for it now by shopping for alarm systems that can ensure every part of your house is safe from criminal activity. Call a trusted supplier of alarm and surveillance systems to know your options.