If you belong to Next Door, the “private social network for your neighborhood community”, you know two things…
1. Very few humans can contain their pets.
2. Your neighborhood is full of criminal activity.
Let me elaborate a bit…
Lost Dog/Cat/Whatever
Almost daily there’s a post on Next Door that someone has lost a pet in our neighborhood.
We must live in either the place where the smartest pets live or the place where clueless owners reside since some pet is always out-smarting his owner and making a run for it.
The owner then publicly announces his pet’s superior intellect to our neighborhood in hopes that our collective intelligence can find Rover, Fluffy, or Spot.
It’s almost comical if it wasn’t so sad.
Why can’t people control their pets?
We had pets from the time I was young until when we had kids (and they were allergic to dogs/cats), and we never had a pet escape our control.
And yet it’s a daily occurrence on Next Door.
Pets > Owners.
Living in a Crime Zone
The pet issue doesn’t really impact me (other than it’s annoying), but what does register on my radar is the security issue.
Quite often (almost daily), there is a post about a break-in, suspicious person/vehicle, etc. in our neighborhood.
Before I go any further, let me clarify:
- We live in a very nice area of Colorado Springs. It’s not a place where you feel unsafe. In fact it’s probably one of the city’s best areas in many ways.
- Our “neighborhood” is pretty large. I’m not sure of the size but it’s at least a few miles long and wide. According to Next Door there are 1,229 households total in our “neighborhood”, so it covers a fair amount of territory. Just wanted you to know this so you don’t think I’m talking about a block or two area.
- The further south you go from us, the older the neighborhoods, the more lower-income housing, etc. Much of the crime is here.
- About a mile to the north of us is a very swanky neighborhood where houses start at $500k (and go much higher). Lots of crime here too (go where the money is!)
- We are not off the hook. Houses a few blocks to each side of us have been hit. Our neighbor across the street had their garage broken into last summer.
Since victims go on Next Door to announce their bad fortune, we’re all well aware that we live in a crime area.
BTW, I’m not sure whether there’s more crime these days or that we just know more of what’s going on so we think there’s more. Just food for thought.
Helping the Criminals Out
A lot of this crime is highly preventable with common sense.
Here’s a sample report that is quite common on Next Door:
Hey, neighbors. Just wanted to let you know that our car was broken into last night.
I just can’t believe that someone would do that and we’re upset as you might imagine.
I’ve reported this to the police but they probably won’t do anything.
At this point someone will comment with something like “how terrible!” They’ll also ask “what were the circumstances?”
They ask this because 1) we all know the circumstances by now and 2) we want to make sure the victim comes clean.
Sometimes the victim will admit their contribution to the crime immediately and sometimes it takes a bit of prying.
That said, in the majority of cases it eventually comes out that:
- The car was parked on the street/in the driveway, not the garage. (Probably because the garage was filled with junk.)
- The car was unlocked. Yep, most of the time it was unlocked, thus making the “break in” less “break” and mostly just “opening”.
- They left something very valuable in plain sight. Examples I’ve seen recently: purse, computer, expensive tools, suitcases, phone, electronics, and so on.
In other words, why don’t they simply fill their car with bags of gold and Rolex watches, then put a neon sign on it that says “Lots of Wealth Here; Easy Opening”?
Sheesh, come on, people. Have some common sense!
The original poster then gets defensive (because he’s been careless) and says something like, “Even though I’m stupid, I don’t deserve to be robbed and we shouldn’t have to live like this.”
He’s right…
He’s stupid.
Ok, it’s also true that it’s a shame we have to use common sense to protect our stuff but we’re not living in Mayberry here!
In fact, they even lock their doors in Mayberry in 2019. I know, that’s where I’m from and where my parents still live. (Not literally Mayberry, but a town just like it.)
Criminals usually go for the easy target and it doesn’t get much easier than an unguarded, unlocked car with something valuable inside.
Thugs Upping Their Game
If this was the only issue, then I wouldn’t think twice about it. We park our cars in the garage.
But the thieves are getting bolder. Here’s a common set of circumstances that’s happened on more than one occasion:
- Criminals break into a car. The car MAY be outside and unlocked or outside and locked.
- They get the garage door opener and open the door.
- They take whatever they want in the garage.
- They try the door from the garage to the house, and if unlocked (which many people seem to leave unlocked), they sometimes enter the house and grab stuff.
- There have been a few instances when the family was actually asleep in the house when thieves came in!
Yikes!
There have also been some garage break-ins. Even bolder, one time a guy was warming up his car in his garage, went inside for a moment, and came out to see guys robbing his truck.
Ugh.
We Have Been Here Before
We lived in Michigan for 14 years. It was during my kids’ formative years and they still think of Michigan as “home”.
Like now, we lived in a nice area of a great city (Grand Rapids).
One January (about a week before we were to leave on a cruise), a young man broke into a home TWO BLOCKS from where we lived and shot an elderly couple, killing them.
Here’s a post on the initial reports.
We found out later he was high on drugs and wanted some cash for more, but for a couple weeks, his motive was unknown.
In addition to killing the couple, he stole their car, drove it to a gas station, bought some gas (he put the gas in a bucket of all things), drove the car around a bit, parked it, and then set it on fire.
From there he made his getaway and was at large.
We lived through him being on the run (and worried he might come back) for the week before we went on the cruise. The entire subdivision was on pins and needles while the police looked for him.
It was on the news every night, the most “exciting” thing happening in GR at the time.
I’ll tell you, nothing will get your attention more than driving home to find you can’t get into your neighborhood because police believe the murderer is in there (and surrounded by a neighborhood blockade) and knowing your family is in the barricaded area as well.
Any way, we made it through a very rough week, left for our cruise, and while we were sailing they found the guy. Turns out he was the son of someone in the neighborhood.
He was later tried, found guilty, and sentenced to life plus some.
Once we returned home, we implemented some security measures.
We got a new front door which was more sturdy and had less glass to see in (also more insulated — something needed in Michigan). We were more diligent in locking doors. We left more lights on. And I got my concealed carry license.
I know owning/having a gun is controversial these days, but if it comes down to someone who’s on drugs in my house threatening my family, I have no qualms about using a weapon to defend ourselves.
So I took a class, got a handgun, secured it at home, and was prepared for a worst-case scenario.
Later when we moved to Oklahoma I taught my kids and wife how to handle a gun. We went to the range quite often (mostly the kids and me, my wife didn’t like the noise). It became a fun activity for us and both kids became fairly good shots. They are also very well-versed in gun safety.
Thankfully we were never crime victims in either Michigan or Oklahoma, but a murder a couple blocks away from us is something you don’t forget.
The Keys to Security
Doing a basic Google search on home security generates quite a few suggestions. Here are some of the ones I liked best:
- 21 Cheap And Effective Tricks To Keep Your Home Safe
- Key Considerations for Securing Your Home
- Crime Prevention Tips — Burglary
- 10 Tips For How To Prevent A Robbery At Home
My summary of these is:
- Thieves look for easy opportunities. Make your house hard to break into (or at least more difficult than other houses in your area).
- A few, inexpensive steps towards security go a long way.
- The key is being aware that security is important and being diligent in following your plans.
- You have a life to live as well, so there’s balance, of course. No one wants to live in a prison, so make the choices with the biggest impact and the least nuisance.
We’re Upping Our Game
As you might imagine, we’ve introduced some security measures to try and prevent any bad events in our home.
These include:
- Outside lights: We turn our outside lights on every dusk and off when I get up. We also installed solar powered lights in front and back, but they are kind of hit or miss in their performance — I may need another solution for them.
- Inside lights: I have several Wemo plugs that turn the lights on and off inside the house. Even when we are not here, the fact that lights go off and on makes it looks like someone is. These were very useful when we went to Grand Cayman.
- Lock on side gate: For the first year we lived here we didn’t have a lock on the gate that goes to our back yard. We do now.
- Lock door to garage: We make sure the door between our garage and house is locked each night.
- Lock cars: We lock our cars even when they are in the garage.
- Know your neighbors: We have a great neighbor to the side of us and a few others on the block. Looking out for each other is key.
- Make it look like someone’s home: This is an advantage of early retirement. It’s easy to make it look like someone’s home because someone is home! We also walk a lot and I think seeing people out and about deters criminals, so our neighbors benefit from our early retirement as well. 😉
- Weapons: We still have a gun, plus I’ve supplemented it with a bat and a club, one placed by the door and the others in our bedroom.
- Moved vital records: These used to be in my office, right by the front door. We have now moved them to a central location in the house.
In addition to these, we have considered a few other measures:
- Motion lights outside the garage. Our neighbor a couple doors down has these and they come on every time I go to the mailbox at night. Not sure how they work any better than simply turning lights on as I think criminals are aware of the fact that it’s the motion turning them on and not a person.
- Video cameras. Either a camera out by the garage or a Ring doorbell.
- Bar or other barrier on sliding glass door in back of house.
In the end, all this stuff is a pain to deal with, but IMO it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Now it’s your turn. What are your home security measures?
One thing to consider is the Ring Floodlight Cam as kills a few birds with one stone (and can get at Costco) as it is a spot light, motion light, has security alarm, records to video and when you are in Grand Cayman you can look and see your front yard with a HD video camera and speak into it from 1000 miles away. I also have the ring doorbell and two little loud dogs, corner lot (with bright street light) and do similar things to what what you mentioned (as just common sense).
We even have a robust home alarm system (that we hardly ever turn on…shame on us)
Millionaire 73
https://esimoney.com/millionaire-interview-73/
I live in a quite rural area so feel the crime rate is low. Nonetheless I have installed an ADT security system to protect against the possibility of a crime.
Keeping the place lit is a great idea and we do so with a lot of landscape lighting.
Thanks —- perfect timing for us.
My wife and I just completed the purchase of a new home in a new neighborhood——. And, this information will help us, I’m sure.
Common sense —— key word ——
But things still happen; unfortunately!
Be safe out there!!
We installed these defender security locks on all exterior doors as well as the garage door and latch them at night before bed, makes it tougher for someone truly wanting to get into your house. Cheap but effective option. Also, a good baby lock as we have them mounted about 6″ from the top of the door frame.
Search “Defender Security U Door Reinforcement Lock”
In terms of garage door I mean the door entering & leaving the garage from the house. Sorry if that sounded confusing at first.
I installed a few “Nest” cameras and the Nest deadbolt lock before the school year started this fall as my daughter would be getting home from school before my wife and I and we wanted to be sure all was well. All-in with three cameras (2 indoor, 1 outdoor) and the door lock the cost was around $1000. It’s another $80-100 per year to have 5 day video recording on the cloud (which you don’t have to have, I think 1 day recording is free). Regardless my wife and I get cell phone alerts whenever anyone comes to the front or back door (including facial recognition telling us the kid has made it home). You can speak from your cell phone through the cameras, make video clips of anything that occurred, etc. I”m sure the cameras alone are a major threat deterrent, but if something were to happen, you can just basically clip the video and send it to the police. (Or even post a video on facebook of your neighbor letting his dog do it’s business in your yard without picking it up for a little neighborhood facebook shaming!).
Nextdoor is the modern equivalent of Mrs. Kravitz from the old Bewitched sitcom.
If you use Wemo and have security cameras, add on IFTTT (If This, Then That). I have connected them and it works great.
Hahaha! I’m beginning to think so too!
I also have the Ring video camera and video door bell. One thing that was somewhat of a surprise – if you want to store recordings for any amount of time, you have to pay $30 per year per device. It’s relatively cheap, but I was upset there was no mention of this fact anywhere on the packaging. If you don’t pay, you only get live video.
It’s worth the cost, though. While I haven’t caught any thieves, I did catch the FedEx guy leaving a package that was sent “Adult Signature Required” at my front door without obtaining a signature. Not only that, he actually forged my signature. That package contained almost $2,000 worth of electronic equipment. If that was stolen, FedEx would have denied the claim because their records show it was signed for by a person. Luckily, I had video proof it was not. I contacted a local manager at FedEx, provided him the video, and I would be surprised if that driver still works for them.
All of these are great tips. But the real joy of this story is your NextDoor review. You’ve captured it perfectly and, some time ago, I really thought it was a great tool (sometimes it is) but then it devolved into exactly what so many other social networks have become, but this one is far more personalized to our immediate area.
I’ve said the exact same thing about people and their pets. How many people can’t keep their pets secured … and so many of them are repeat offenders, still with no tags. Ours has even devolved into such hyper sensitive posts about ANYONE who is walking up the street. One just recently mentioned “Be alert, an unsavory sort is walking into the subdivision…..” They actually used the word “unsavory sort” and went on to describe why he didn’t belong. You can imagine what followed when many knew the guy and had great things to say about him.
My favorites are the ones who use zero capitalizaion and zero punctuation while trying to make a bold, critical or intelligent observation or post.
And then there are the petty theft, break ins (usually an open garage), vandalism, etc. which is immediately followed by these exact phrases: “That it is so terrible …” and “I am so sorry this happened to you”. I’ve actually gotten so conditioned to these I have a hard time even being empathetic anymore which is terrible.
My favorite one of all time was the guy who swore there was a UFO and then the back and forth that went one with half (seemingly) of my small town about the possibility of it and judgments about the mental states of each other.
We get the warnings as well. I’m starting to think if an unknown 8-year-old girl was walking around people would be mentioning her as a “potential suspect”.
Here are three that you won’t find in the listicles…
1) Pea-gravel underneath windows and along side of home. Impossible to move on silently.
2) Door brace, in particular for double-front doors. Prevents easy kick-ins.
https://www.globalsecurityexperts.com/products/security-door-brace.html
3) When parking in your garage, stay inside your car and close the garage door with the opener. This prevents someone rolling under the closing door, and surprising you as you exit your car.
By habit, we always lock the car when it is on the drive. If it is staying on the drive overnight – my garage doubles as my workshop – I remove the garage opener…. I’m pretty sure our car insurance doesn’t cover theft of valuables unless they are out of sight and car is locked. Our neighbour’s cars were stolen the other night. (new BMW & older one) Thieves broke into the house, lifted the keys of both cars, and drove them away…. So if you have a nice car, put your keys somewhere safe. Our car was on our drive, but as it is quite old, they weren’t interested, and our house alarm would have woken the neighbourhood! Brightly lit alarm box, with movement sensors and call through to security company.
Great ideas. You just never know when things like this happen and you want to be protected in such situations. I think making yourself looking less like a target relative to your neighbors is also very helpful. Like having your house look a little less maintained, driving an older car or riding a worn-out bike. Criminals are attracted to the shiny things. If something happens, the neighbors with fancy stuff on display get hit first!!
The Nextdoor site was a good tool at the beginning but our site continued to grow in neighborhoods. I can limit what I read but now it is almost fun vs informative. I did send a comment to Nextdoor recently that they need to have a PET only section. In the Texas area, pet owners worry about bobcats eating their pets.
Security is so important and unfortunately we take for granted way too many times.
We have the same bobcat issues in CO…
After reading this I’m having second thought of moving back to the USA. I haven’t had to deal with crime or break ins for the past 13 years of living. That is a negative point of moving back as is the cost of healthcare but in all fairness there are many positives that need to be included in the mix.
-Mike
My security alarms are 3 dogs. My miniature dachshund has a bark that sounds like she’s a Great Dane!
Having 2 sturdy 20-something sons who live here also helps.
All of these common sense and inexpensive steps should be taken, especially regarding cars parked outside. I have lived in a middle class urban neighborhood southeast of Seattle for 15 years. The Seattle homeless, drugs, and crime problem continues to grow and metastasize to the greater Seattle area.
I would like to share some thoughts and experiences (amusing, in retrospect), which may be helpful and insightful.
My neighborhood has an excellent HOA, and we fund 24×7 security patrol, which monitors and observes and alerts local sheriff office as necessary. I personally had a young day laborer whose job had been canceled, decided to break into my house in mid morning during the work week, through a bedroom window looking for drugs and left with a pillow case with laptop, jewelry and prescription drugs, which were hidden but he found them. Our security patrol spotted him (yes, a pillow case over the shoulder!), casually engaged in conversation with his microphone hot to the county sheriff, who showed up a few minutes later. I was called by the security patrol at work and immediately drove home. The security patrol had tracked it back to my house from the prescription bottle. Fortunately, all was retrieved with the damage limited to the broken window.
Needless to say, we felt “violated”.
My wife and I retired 2 years ago with plans for Europe trips. I researched available security offerings due to the earlier break in experience and selected SimpliSafe. I self installed the system for $460 (yes, “system in a box”) in a few hours, and signed up for the $25/month monitoring, allowed me to observe, control and receive alerts via my iphone while traveling in Europe. I linked it to the SimpliSafe alert center, which had our security patrol and local contact phone numbers. This provided a significant level of comfort and security whilst we were traveling. Upon returning, I downgraded to the $15/month monitoring service, which does not include the remote control via app capability. There is no contract required and can upgrade/downgrade as necessary, while traveling. I am satisfied with the value/cost and performance of the system. We have had no further episodes, perhaps due to the alarm yard sign in front and window stickers.
I have considered putting in video camera doorbells and security cameras, however have not due to value/cost considerations.
I hope this is useful to those who continue their “thrifty” ESI ways into retirement
The bar on the sliding doors is a an important one, but having neighbors who know your schedule is also a good one. In our case, we live on a cul de sac, and most of us keep eyes on each other. Most of us also have dogs and we allow them to run through each others yards at odd times as to the dogs needs. Mind you everyone is good about cleaning up after the dogs, but it does put bodies outside in the evenings and other times of the day.
I am not a huge fan of the cameras for one reason; hacking. I think the larger, known companies like Ring would be safer, but there are lots of stories of them being hacked with not nice people talking to kids and the like. It’s something to consider. I am 50/50 on them, but that is only considering the known and named companies.
Good on you for your responsible gun-ownership – AND – being in the FI community.
We have three homes to protect, each in very different circumstances:
1) Big-city townhouse within a wealthy, lower-density neighborhood. Security features iron bars on lower-level windows (nice-looking ones), and full house, professionally installed and maintained monitored alarm system (plus fire and heat sensors). Windows and doors are individually armed with sensors so alarm co can tell exactly whats going on. I cringe whenever it accidentally goes off because it is VERY LOUD. Cost around ~$4,000 to install. Also, recently installed a Nest cam out front and intend to install Nest doorbell.
2) Country villa on several bucolic hillside acres, in a very rural small town popular with big city weekenders. The house is very secluded, so very vulnerable, though the town is so tiny that any break-in or suspicious people spotted in town is immediately posted to residents by the mayor (via automated email/text). Mostly we get the occasional wave of vehicle thefts or break-ins as the criminal types are like traveling bands, never staying in one place very long. 99% of the time the cars or homes are unlocked. We keep doors mostly locked when we are home unless someone is outside, and car is tucked away in garage at night (though unlocked if sitting in driveway) mostly to keep it cleaner.
This home is protected by a similar professionally installed alarm system to the big-city home, with the addition of several Nest cams situated on the exterior of of the house – I can see drive-way, garage, access road, pool area, decks, etc. even at night due to infra-red mode. Mostly, it shows me when personnel, such as property manager, housekeeper, garbage disposal, pest control, landscaper, etc. are coming and going. We don’t use the Nest cams on the interior – too weird, too much risk of hacking. We do use the video archiving – I think about 10 days is saved. Well worth the cost. Property has a full house generator so we can see what’s going on even during power outages. I make sure everyone who has anything to do with the house knows its fully video surveilled – just so they don’t get any ideas. The Nest cams can be set to text you when motion/sound is detected. Not perfect, but works ok once you refine the sensitivity.
3) Waterfront condo in a popular, sunbird vacation spot. Community is gated with full-time security, so no extra security measures taken, other than to have someone check the apt every now and then (for leaks, damage, etc.).
We also make a habit of keeping expensive jewelry in safe deposit boxes, so wife only has a few items at a time. Otherwise, there just isn’t a whole lot of portable stuff to grab other than computer equipment. Car is a luxury model but going on 10 years old now, so not worth more than $10K.
Overall, security is a major concern, though our homes are in comparatively “safe” communities. As someone noted above, certainly for property crimes, the criminals go where the money is located.
Bottomline, I’m a lot less worried about theft – we can well afford to replace stuff – biggest concern and reason for all the security systems is personal safety.
On this topic, I should add that the city and country homes do have warning signs/stickers. The city home has small discrete window decals, and the country home has a low key but very visible sign for the alarm co at the driveway entrance (as seems to be the norm in the community).
Could just be me, but one of my pet peeves is the big blue ADT yard sign on a stick thing in urban and suburban areas – there is something about them that seems very off putting to me…. I also get a bad vibe when I see Neighborhood Crime Watch signs. It sort of says “crime lives hear, we are very afraid, and we will shoot first and ask questions later”.
Am I wrong? Is it just me? Does anyone else feel the same way?
I’ve heard that just having a security sign (not even the service) is a deterrent…
We used to have ADT, but though our alarm accidentally went off several times, the only time we received a phone call from them was when the low backup battery alarm went off. We switched to Frontpoint, but left our ADT sign up as a hopeful deterrent (if nothing else than to ward off ADT soliciting lol). Our alarm accidentally went off one time (houseguest thought the alarm warning was the chime that happens on some alarms when you open a door), Frontpoint was on the phone with us in less than a minute.
When I lived in an urban area, I did experience coming home one night to police blockade. Later they went through the neighborhood on foot and shined a flashlight through my windows–likely because my apartment was attached to the garage behind a house. Thankfully I’m paranoid and keep my blinds closed/doors locked.
We use the built in timer on our smart tv and have multiple lights on timers. We’ve had neighbors and even my brother think we had house sitters when we were on vacation because of the lights and the tv going on and off in the morning and at night. I also purchased ADT signs on ebay that we have outside.