It is up to you as a homeowner to do everything possible to keep their home properly secured. While you may think the only thing you have to do is get an alarm system put into your home, you have many other choices. Continue reading for some expert tips on making your home safe.

Do you let your dog outside if you leave the house? They can help you with a useful place to hide your key. Put the key on their collar. This is especially well as storage if the dog does not take kindly to strangers.

Be sure your home always looks occupied. Buy timers that will make your TVs, radios and other electronics turn on and turn off at various times. Potential intruders will stay away from your home if they believe someone is inside. This helps you keep your house burglar-free.

Buy a small home safe that you can use to keep all of your valuables in. Keep it hidden in your basement or attic to make it hard to find location.

Above doors or under a mat are much too common to hide them and potential criminals will check them first. You should hide the key with your dog’s collar.

Place your spare key securely on your dog’s collar. This can be done if your dog can come outside. You can purchase a special collar that will hold your spare key, so when you forget your keys your dog can let you in.

This will give your home an extra protection layer.

Ask friend for advice before you choose a home security system or company. Your loved ones likely have dealt with you. Ask around to get lots of advice as you need in order to make a better choice.

Only provide your house cleaner with a key if you trust him or her implicitly. Make sure you know they are legitimate before giving out the key. Carefully check their references. Contact your local Better Business Bureau to find out more about the reputation of the cleaner you hired.

You never open your door to someone you do not know. People often think of ways to convince others to open up their doors so they can steal from them. Make a rule forbidding anyone to open the door to people who you were expecting.

There is a solution for people that are worried about burglars going into their home through the garage. You can use a C-clamp to secure the door from being opened.

Buy roofing, flooring and interior paneling that is flame resistant. These materials will protect your home from both internal fires and the spread of fires that start on other properties. Fire prevention is paramount.

Keeping your car inside is a good way to keep criminals from stealing or harming it. This will also make it more difficult for burglars to track when you away from knowing your schedule.

Make sure that your valuables cannot be seen from the home. Large windows at the home’s front can be beautiful, but they also allow outsiders to see inside your living space.

See if your local police department offers any home inspection or other protection programs. There are plenty of things that can be done, from a safety walk to cataloging expensive items to help protect your investment and your family. Discuss these programs with a local police officer to see if they’re available in your area.

Most break-ins and burglaries occur because a door is left open and an unlocked door.It can be a quick job for a burglar to steal lots of great value.

Replace all the locks in a new house.Regardless of how you feel about the sellers, neither you nor they can be sure that there aren’t others out there with keys to those locks.

You should always park your car inside your garage instead of using your garage to store some belongings. Keep the car within the garage will make sure no one harms or steals it. Hiding your car away from plain view is a good way to keep intruders from knowing when you are at home or not.

Are you aware of the value of your home’s wires are worth something? A lot of people don’t realize this fact until a thief steals them from the house. The wiring contains valuable copper than can be quickly taken off a home. Make sure your wiring is hidden or difficult to access to keep this valuable property safe.

If you move to a place that was occupied before, then you should immediately change the locks. The person who used to live there may still have made some copies of the key. You might even purchase and install your own locks yourself to make sure you’re the only one who has a key.

Be bold. It is important to communicate with others who also live in your area. Watch their homes for suspicious activity and get their word that they will do the same thing for you. Pay attention to gossip. You can learn of important security information, including if strangers have been lurking.

Always get references before letting anyone work inside your home. A background check is also be a good idea. You can never be too sure about anyone you hire to enter your home, and this could be a very bad mistake.

Be certain to read the fine print to any contracts you hire a home security firm. There are sometimes fees for terminating the contract or need additional equipment. You want to avoid as many of these fees as you can, so make sure you are aware of them.

Switch your locks. Whether you just bought your home or someone just moved out that you were living with, this is an important step to any new situation. It is not expensive and you can do it in less than a day.

You can proceed to protect your home now that you know what to do. While it might seem like a lot of work, it is imperative that you do all you can to ensure the safety of your home and your family. The tips in this article should help you accomplish just that.