Should You Have a Burglar Alarm?

I remember the day when no one even thought of installing a burglar alarm in their home. Gone are the days when everyone on the block felt comfortable leaving their doors unlocked day and night. I remember when I was younger, no one locked their doors on either their homes or their cars. No one even thought about locking their doors while they were home. When people did eventually start locking their doors, they "cleverly" left a key under the mat.

Many people feel like they could never be the victim of a burglary. I haven't been able to find 2008 statistics yet but I have discovered that in 2004 there were 2.14 million burglaries reported. An estimated ten year trend shows a 4.5% annual increase in burglaries.

According to one source, homes with a burglar alarm installed are three times less likely to be burgled that homes without a burglar alarm system.

The cost of burglar alarm systems has decreased dramatically. You can buy very affordable systems that make it possible for many more homes to make use of burglar alarms.

While most people will hire a contractor to install the burglar system, there are very good DIY systems available to the general public.

Traditionally, burglar alarms would just sound a piercingly loud alarm when activated. Unfortunately, most people have become desensitized to the sound of burglar alarm security systems and completely ignore them. It's very uncommon for someone to call the police when they hear an alarm blaring these days. The more likely reaction is to simply get annoyed that the owner is taking so long to turn the "false alarm" off.

Although your neighbors are likely to ignore your burglar alarm, an audible alarm will most likely scare the would be burglar away. These people tend to like things to be quiet while they are working. Not to many burglars like attention being drawn to them while they are working. Some very bold burglars will simply cut the power to the alarm siren. They'll count on your neighbors ignoring the audible alarm and they'll brazenly go about their business of clearing out your valuables.

The solution to ignored audible burglar alarms lies in burglar alarm monitoring companies. If you install a burglar alarm and pay a modest monthly fee, a service will call the police for you when they receive a report of an activated alarm. These systems are usually connected to a dedicated phone line so that in the event of an alarm activation, the system can automatically dial the monitoring service.

Many crafty burglars will case your home and attempt to cut the phone lines before breaking in. They're counting on disabling the burglar alarm systems ability to call the monitoring service. Skilled alarm installers will attempt to cleverly conceal and protect the phone lines to prevent this.

The next level in burglar alarm systems are configured with wireless capabilities. A wireless burglar alarm can stop a would be burglar in his tracks. The would be burglar may cut the phone line but there isn't any line to cut on a wireless system. Should the alarm activate, the system will call the monitoring service. They work on cellular phone technology.

Many people who own homes with burglar alarms installed in them are sometimes reluctant to activate them when they leave home. They are worried that their pets will cause the alarm to falsely activate. This can be avoided by only activating the perimeter sensors or by having pet friendly motion sensor installed. There is never a reason that someone should leave their home without activating their home burglar alarm systems.

It's also very common for people to forget to activate the home burglar alarm system while they are home. Many home invasions happen while the occupants of the home are actually in the house. Again, the solution here is to only activate the perimeter alarms. This should be done religiously every night before bed.

Some people feel like they live in a nice protected neighborhood and don't need a home security burglar alarm. Maybe they even live in a gated community. No one should ever assume that their home won't be a target of burglary. It's not only upscale homes that burglars choose to hit. As a matter of fact, many burglars will skip these homes an move on to what they believe to be easier targets. Most skilled burglars bank on the fact that upscale homes will be equipped with alarms.

Strangely enough, some people choose not to install burglar alarms in their homes because they feel like their presence might indicate that there are valuables in the home. The fact is that studies have shown that even a sign in the yard indicating that the home is equipped with a burglar alarm system is a deterrent. Knowing this it seems silly to not install burglar alarm equipment in your home.

The bottom line is that alarm systems are inexpensive and proven deterrents to burglars. Having one may even save your life should a home invasion happen while you are sleeping.

In this day and age everyone should take the steps to install a basic burglar alarm system in their home. Installing home burglar alarms can give you a peace of mind that's hard to put a price on.

This is a video that shows a really cool new product available from Brick House Security (formerly known as Brinks Home Security).  It's a keyless door lock with intruder alarm that I can't wait to add to my home.  I think you'll enjoy it.