Do you ever get that sinking feeling that something’s wrong?
You’re not sure if you’re just being paranoid or if there’s an actual threat to your property, but your intuition is telling you it’s the latter. If a burglar is indeed targeting your home, how can you be sure?
You can’t be too careful in today’s world. Burglars are everywhere and they will do anything to get their hands on your stuff!
In this article, we’ll go over 7 signs that indicate a burglar is watching your house. You should always keep an eye out for these things to protect yourself from harm.
According to the FBI statistics, a burglar strikes every 30 seconds in the (United States) US. That adds up to two burglaries every minute and over 3,000 burglaries per day.
Safewise.com
7 Signs That A Potential Burglar Is Watching Your House:
- You get fliers in your mailbox/mail slot very often when you didn’t before
Flyers that stay on your door or mat are a way for burglars to let their accomplices know that no one is home. - People come by your property to take photos, then leave
If anyone is stopping to specifically take a photo of your home – this could certainly be a red flag of a possible casing. - A stranger shows up at your door asking for emergency assistance
A tactic that has been used probably since the stone ages! Never open the door if you do not know the person. - You get a lot more door-to-door salespeople
Burglary rings will use multiple people to come to your door, pretending to be sales reps and get information from you in their quest to case your home. - Surveyors are at your door when they never used to be
Again, strangers coming to your door pretending to be something they are not. - You see a lot of strange people walking down the street
If you notice any person or persons strolling by, perhaps walking by your house several times and spending a few minutes looking at your home – well again, another red flag. - Cars that don’t belong to any of your neighbors are parked on the street
Many thieves will sit in cars behind dark windows making it difficult to see who is in the car. So, if there are cars parked nearby that you don’t recognize – call the neighbors first and if they don’t recognize the vehicle either, then call the police immediately.
On their own, these 7 warning signs might not mean much, but if you’ve noticed several odd goings-on in tandem, you’re right to worry about suspicious activity like these around your home.
Any one of these situations could easily be a red flag that your home is being cased by a wannabe thief.
In this article, I’ll tell you why burglars target homeowners like you, what they look for to mark properties, and what to do now to prevent being a victim of a home invasion.
What Attracts Burglars To Homes?
Several things attract burglars to homes. Among them are a lack of security, having an isolated property, rarely being home, and displaying high-dollar items around the home and yard.
If you’ve ever seen the movie, Home Alone, then you know that some burglars don’t randomly select homes to ransack, but will use some degree of consideration.
That’s similar to how a criminal won’t target just any individual, but looks for those who look weak and/or distracted.
So what qualities make homes potential targets?
Here’s what thieves are looking out for when they choose their next home to rob.
Lack Of Security
If you don’t have outdoor security cameras or a home security system, now is a really good time to consider getting one.
Do make sure that some of the components of the security system are installed on the exterior of your home, such as the central hub or a few cameras or motion-sensing lights.
In the absence of alarm systems, a burglar may think they can waltz right in and take what they want.
Home security experts say that only 17 percent of U.S. residences have a working home security system, while 83 percent of burglars say they look to see if a home has an alarm system before making a decision about breaking in.
Siouxcityjournal.com
Poorly Maintained Entry Points
If your home has a broken window or a door that does not lock properly – well – that’s just basically an invitation to any thief in the area! Don’t wait to get these types of issues fixed.
People Who Are Rarely Or Never Home
A telltale sign that your house is a good target for home burglaries is if there are clear signs that it is empty for long periods of time.
Smart criminals won’t pounce on a property at the first chance. Instead, they’ll hang out for a while and watch how the residents come and go on a daily and even weekly basis.
Once the burglar learns your schedule, they can plan their break-in at a time when you’re not home.
The homeowners who spend the most time away from their houses are the easiest targets because they’ll never see a burglary coming.
Compare that to someone who works from home.
It’s too risky for a burglar to break in to that person’s home at any point, day or night, because someone is almost always going to be in the house.
Isolated Properties
How close are you to your neighbor? No, not relationship-wise, but proximity-wise. If the answer is close to a mile, then you could be setting yourself up for a burglary.
Criminals don’t like an audience, so breaking into a home on a busy street is a huge risk for them.
Even if you’re not home to see the burglar break in, your neighbors on either side might be – not to mention the neighbors across the street.
That’s why, in general, burglars who break into homes on busy streets will do so in the dead of night, when most people are sleeping and there are fewer witnesses.
If your closest neighbor isn’t within earshot, then a burglar will feel confident that they can break in whenever you’re not home – even if that happens to be in broad daylight.
Valuable Items In Plain Sight
You’ve worked hard for the nice things you own.
You may not flaunt these goods, per se, but if someone peers into the windows of your home, they could see that huge flat-screen TV or other valuables. In some cases, it’s as easy as scoping the driveway for a fancy car.
These items advertise to burglars that you have money, and lots of it.
Compared to okay-looking houses with a mid-priced car in the driveway, your home is going to be a target.
Do Burglars Mark Houses?
Smart burglars will often come up with a strategy before breaking in, and they will indeed mark your house. This is done in very subtle ways so passersby and neighbors might not realize something is amiss. You, yourself, might not even notice.
How does a burglar mark your home?
One method they’ll use is putting a sticker on your home. If you see one, you might think it was a prank by the neighborhood kids when really the sticker indicates that your house could soon be burglarized.
Even the presence of fliers in your mailbox can tell other criminals what a burglar’s intent is.
There’s also a so-called burglar’s code, full of signs and symbols that have special meanings among criminals.
Here is an image of the signs per an Express article. I’ve heard of the symbols referring to different things, such as:
- An N means the home is empty at night and an M refers to a home that’s vacant in the morning.
- Two barred waves indicate that a man lives at the home and that he will be responsive to women.
- A cross means the family that lives there are probably religious and may respond to door-to-door religious pamphlet passing.
- A ladder stands for your home having many valuables; the more rungs on the ladder, the more valuables on your property.
- A barred circle means the burglar will avoid the house, likely due to the presence of burglar alarms.
- An empty circle refers to a home that’s perceived as an easy target.
What To Do If You Think Your House Is Being Cased
So far, based on what you’ve read, you may be thinking that burglars have cased your home.
Even if they haven’t broken in yet, you’re starting to worry that it will happen sooner than later.
The good thing is that there’s still time to throw the criminals off their game by doing the following.
Lock Your Doors (And Windows!)
If you’re leaving any doors or windows unlocked, you’re inviting in burglars. Everyone always thinks to lock their front door, but what about your side door or back door?
Go through all the windows in your home and double-check that they’re locked tight, as well.
It’s reported that 34% of burglars come in through the front door.
So, because of this I would recommend to use a strong door bar (like this one) which can make it almost impossible to kick the door down.
Stay Home More Often
I’m not asking you to become a prisoner in your own home, but if you know your house is being cased, it’s irresponsible to be away more than you have to.
Cancel a few social obligations until the threat passes so you can be on your turf.
When a burglar comes by to scope out your home and sees that someone is home, it should rattle them.
Keep The Lights On
When you can’t be home, such as for work or school, the thief doesn’t have to know that.
Leave a few lights on in the home or use smart outlets to plug in your lamps. With these, you can control when the lamps turn on or off via a phone app, despite being away from home.
Don’t turn every light in the home on, though, as that looks unnatural.
Lights might deter robbers, but many say that closed blinds and an illuminated porch are actually big indicators that the house is empty.
Keep Music or The TV On
In addition to keeping some lights on a timer, it’s also a good idea to have music and/or the television playing as well. You can also put these on a timer as well.
Use A Carpool
Okay, but if the lights are on and there’s no car in the driveway, that’s a dead giveaway that you’re not home, right? Correct.
There’s a way around that, however.
You can start taxiing or Ubering to and from work/school. If that’s too expensive, talk to a coworker or friend about carpooling.
You can ride to your destination in their vehicle and keep your car in the driveway.
Change Your Schedule
A change in routine will certainly upend a burglar’s plans.
If you’re in school, perhaps you swap classes so you’re home on different days or you leave/get home later or earlier than you used to.
At work, talk to your boss about working a slightly earlier or later shift. If you explain what’s going on at home, they should be willing to accommodate you.
Stop Posting On Social Media
It should come as no surprise to anyone that social media accounts are an easy way for burglars to begin their watchful eyes on you and your activities.
So, I can’t stress this piece of advice enough – STOP POSTING YOUR ACTIVITIES ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
Police said the suspects followed their victims’ social media accounts to determine when homeowners would be at work, travel or even host a large party.
A news story about a burglary in River Oaks Texas
Maintain Your Property
By keeping your home in pristine condition, it tells robbers loud and clear that yes, you’re at home a lot. Mow the lawn, rake the leaves, and clean your car.
Let Neighbors Know
If you suspect that you’re being marked by burglars, your neighbors can keep an eye out in your absence.
They might be able to tell you when strange people were on the street, someone parked in front of your home and took pictures, or your home was tagged with a sticker.
Contact The Police
If the burglary threat has gotten to the point where you feel like your personal safety is at risk, you shouldn’t hesitate to make phone calls to the police.
There might not be much they can do right now except patrol the street, but even that is usually enough to ward off a burglar.
You may also want to consider speaking to se
How Do You Burglar Proof Your Home?
Even if you don’t feel threatened right now, you can never be too careful.
The best way to start protecting yourself is by taking steps like installing a security system, reinforcing your doorjamb, locking windows, and using motion sensor lights outside the home can help to burglar proof your home.
1) Buy A Security System
A security system is always a good idea and remains your best defense against burglars and other nefarious characters.
Yours should ideally have a front-door camera so you can see who’s on your property.
Motion-sensor lights are also beneficial, because they can flood your home with light if a burglar steps too close to the property.
A security system with a phone app lets you watch live video footage of your home around the clock, even when you’re not there. Now you can always have eyes on your property!
2) Lock Your Windows
As I mentioned in a prior section, you can help avoid burglaries by locking all of your doors and windows.
If you have sliding glass doors, you need to get a patio door lock. This will prevent a burglar from simply lifting the slider door high enough to bypass the lock and walking into your home.
At the very least, measure the length of your sliding door track, subtract about 3 inches from that length and go get a 2″ x 2″ piece of wood from a home improvement store (Home Depot, Lowe’s etc).
They will cut the wood to fit the length you need (usually for free). Then, just drop the wood into the sliding door track to secure the slider from being lifted.
Also, be sure to remove any valuables and lock your car if it’s sitting in your driveway.
3) Don’t Hide Spare Keys In Obvious Spots
Do you have a spare key on the premises? More than likely, you answered yes.
Where do you keep that spare key? If it’s under the front door mat, that’s not good enough. Any somewhat smart burglar can discover the key and then unlock the door rather than break it down.
Here is a much better place to hide a spare key – get inventive and make artificial dog poop using hot glue and brown paint!
Squirt out a mound of hot glue that looks fecal-like and let it dry.
Then paint it. Put your spare key in a container, and then glue the fake poop to the lid of that container. Bury the container in the yard so the fake poop is visible.
No burglar will want to touch that!
4) Reinforce Your Doorjamb
The doorjamb is one of the weakest parts of your door. With a reinforced strike plate and some long screws, it won’t be so easy for a burglar to kick down your door.
It’s also not a bad idea to get a new deadbolt or a smart lock if your deadbolt is older than 10 years.
Wrapping Up
It can be terrifying to realize a burglar is watching your home, but you’re not without your defenses.
By following these tips we’ve outlined above, you can have some peace of mind knowing that you’re doing all that you can to protect your home and loved ones.
That said, always be careful, and if you do feel like your home is going to be invaded, please call the police!
I would say to have your local police station’s phone number in your phone, on your refrigerator door, etc.
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