NAP- Neighborhood Alliance of Pawtucket

What a Thief Looks for when He Wants to Rob Your Home

Published: Thu August 5th, 2010

By: Jaime A. Heidel

Category: People

Thieves are on the lookout for homes that make an easy target. Find out what a thief looks for when he wants to rob your home & how to hide it.

What A Thief Looks For

If you're away from home, a thief may simply look up your number in the phone book and call at all hours. If he receives no response for a couple of days your home may start to look good to him.

How To Hide It

Whether you're on a weekend getaway or a two-week vacation, forward calls from the landline to your cell phone. That way, if a potential thief calls, you may be poolside a thousand miles from home but according to him, you're "there" to answer.

What A Thief Looks For

Nothing says, "come on in, nobody's home" to a thief like magazines and bills falling out of the mailbox and newspapers piling up on the lawn.

How To Hide It

Go to the post office and have them hold mail for the length of time you plan to be away. Call the newspaper you subscribe to and let them know to halt delivery until you return.

What A Thief Looks For

The lights are off and nobody's home.

How To Hide It

Pick up an inexpensive timer system for indoor & outdoor lights. This way, you can set them to switch on and off according to your usual schedule creating the illusion somebody is at home.

What A Thief Looks For

The "hidden" key you keep under your doormat.

How To Hide It

Everybody's locked themselves out of the house once or twice. Instead of hiding a spare key to your front door right next to your front door, keep a spare in your car. You can also give the spare to a trusted neighbor who can keep it indoors with them until it's needed.

What A Thief Looks For

The ladder against the side of the house leftover from Sunday's chores.

How To Hide It

It's easy to forget to put tools such as ladders and hedge trimmers away but look at it from a the perspective of a thief; that ladder could be used to gain entry and the hedge trimmers could be used as a weapon. For safety's sake, it is important to put all tools in a locked tool shed when not in use.

What A Thief Looks For

The tall bush that completely hides the unlocked window to a state-of-the-art home office.

How To Hide It

Trimming bushes and hedges around windows is a good way to make a thief think twice about trying to break in unnoticed. Keep windows on the ground floor locked when nobody is at home. Take care not to accidentally advertise a valuable computer or home theatre system by keeping curtains closed or assuring valuable items are not visible from the street or lawn.

What A Thief Looks For

Indication that your home is protected by a security system.

What You Can Do To Make Him Believe It

Even if you don't have an alarm system, you can deter a thief by placing realistic-looking "protected by security system" decals on your windows and doors. What he doesn't know will protect you.

There you have it. What a thief looks for when he wants to rob your home and how to hide it.