The National Association of Realtors has designated the month of September as Realtor Safety Month and shares safety tips with members.
The Silicon Valley Association joins the national group in its commitment to the safety and reminds members to regularly review these safety tips and share them with their clients.
Whether you work at home or not, you might want to consider additional steps to secure your home. Burglars usually leave if they can’t break in within 90 seconds. Anything that slows down a thief by even a minute or two can keep your house from being robbed.
Below are safety tips homeowners can practice to secure their home from the National Association of Realtors’ Realtor Safety Resources Kit:
• Make sure all doors to the outside are metal or solid, 1¾-inch hardwood and have good, sturdy locks.
• Keep your doors and windows locked, even if you’re at home. Get your children into this habit, too. Always lock up your home when you go out, even if it’s only for a few minutes.
• Secure sliding glass doors with commercially available bars or locks, or put a wooden dowel or broomstick in the door track.
• If your garage door hasn’t been locking correctly, call experts to do a garage door repair.
• Make sure your windows, especially at ground level, have good locks and use them.
• Make sure all porches and other possible entrances are well lit. Heat- or motion-sensing lights are a good choice for outdoor lights.
• Trim any bushes or trees that hide doors or windows. Keep ladders, tools, toys and recreational equipment inside when you’re not using them.
• Don’t hand out keys to friends, even if they are trustworthy. Know the location of all your house keys all the time. Never use hide-a-keys or leave the key under the doormat, above the door, in a flowerpot or anywhere outside the house. You may think you’re being clever, but experienced thieves know all the tricks. Also, keep your car keys and house keys on a different ring if you ever use valet parking or leave your keys with parking lot attendants or even at a repair garage.
• Watch your trash: Just bought a new entertainment system? A bunch of empty boxes out by the curb triggers an alarm to would-be thieves. Instead of putting boxes out in plain sight, cut them down and stuff them in trash bags.
• Keep written records of all furniture, jewelry and electronic products. If possible, keep these records in a safe deposit box, fireproof safe or other secure place. Take pictures or a video, and keep purchase information and serial numbers if available. These help law enforcement agencies track recovered items.
• Clearly display your house number so police and other emergency vehicles can find your home quickly.
• If you see a screen that has been cut, broken windows or a door that’s been left open, don’t go in. Call the police from a neighbor’s house or a public phone.
• If you hear a noise that sounds like someone breaking in or moving around, quietly call the police and wait calmly until they arrive. If you can leave safely, do so. Otherwise, lock yourself in a room you are in, pretend to be asleep.
“Preparation is the best way to protect yourself against crime. Arm yourself with the knowledge to keep you safe, and always trust your instinct. If you feel something is not right, it probably is,” said Carolyn Miller, president of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors. Miller invites homeowners to visit real tor.org/safety for more information on how to stay safe in your home, on the road and in your place of business.
Information is presented by the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors at silvar.org. Contact rmeily@silvar.org.
