New Home Security Systems Offer More Versatility Than Ever Before

The function of a home security system has always been the same: to set off an alarm in case of unauthorized entry into your house. While the goal of home security remains the same today, newer systems have added functionality that make them more versatile. In much of the same way that cellphones have evolved into smartphones, adding a new security system to your home can offer enhanced benefits. Here’s a look at some of the benefits that come with installing or upgrading to a new security system.

Intrusion Protection

First things first, home security systems still protect your home against burglary. No matter the other functions that come with your intrusion protection system, being an effective deterrent against burglary is still the most important feature. In the world of today, not having a security system is not an option. According to the FBI, over 2 million burglaries happen in the United States every year, and 75 percent occur on residential property.

Think you can’t afford a home security system? Consider this: The average cost in lost property for a break-in is $2,100. Additionally, a Rutgers University study found that security systems not only alert the authorities of a break-in but also deter break-ins altogether. This puts the need to own a security system into perspective.

Remote Home Monitoring

One new feature that’s often included with modern home security systems is remote monitoring. This is a feature that allows you to see what’s going on outside and inside your home when you’re away. Being able to monitor your home in real time can put your mind at ease when you’re on vacation. If you have young children that get home from school before you get home from work, you can keep an eye on them with your remote monitoring system. You can also use the technology to check on your pets.

Carbon Monoxide, Water and Fire Detection

There are numerous things to worry about besides just home break-ins. For example, would you know if there was a carbon monoxide leak in your home? What if you were away and a fire broke out? New home security systems can detect these kinds of problems and much more.

By alerting the authorities directly, your home security system could save your home and priceless memories from being destroyed in an accidental fire. The same can be said about a random pipe bursting in your home. The water damage that could be done to your home before you’re aware of it may be catastrophic.

While it’s true that most states require a home to be fitted with a smoke detector, most don’t alert the authorities in the event of a fire. They are designed to alert you of a fire, but if you and your family are away from home, they offer little value.

Insurance Discounts

Depending on your home insurance provider, you could qualify for a discount after having a new home security system installed. This is because insurance companies want to reward homeowners who are doing their part to protect their homes against break-ins. When a person does more to protect themselves, insurance companies view them as less risky to insure. In some cases, the discounts are as high as 20 percent. While this discount might not be enough to cover the monthly cost of your home security system, it’s enough to help offset the cost some.

Total Home Control

In an era when nearly everything in your home can be connected together, home security systems can be used to control multiple aspects of your home while you’re away. These features are typically controlled via your smartphone device. Many home security systems allow you to control

  • the locks on your doors,
  • lights both inside and outside, and
  • your thermostat.

Having this control allows you to come home to a well-lit house. You can also save money on your cooling bill by turning up the temperature in your home while you are away and turning it back down to cool the house before you return.

Remote Arming and Disarming

Did you leave your home and forget to set your alarm? No worries because you can remotely set your home security system with most units. As with other remote features, you can set the alarm using your smartphone. You also have the option to disarm your home security system should a special situation arise.

24-Hour, 7-Day a Week Protection

You can’t always be there to protect your home, but a home security system is. Most systems come with live support that monitors your house 24 hours a day, seven days a week. So no matter if you’re at home and asleep or away on vacation, you can rest easy knowing that your home is being protected and watched over.

In general, there aren’t any reasons why homeowners shouldn’t have home security systems installed in their homes. Most units cost just a few dollars a day and provide a wide range of features that simply aren’t possible without a security system.

Methods of Intrusion

There are things that many burglars look for before breaking into a home. In order to make sure that your home security system is protecting you adequately, you will need to know what some of these different methods are. All of this information is taken from Chicago ex-burglars who were willing to share their past secrets. 

Knocking on the door is one of the most common ways that burglars check and see if someone is home. Many ex-burglars report that they will knock on a door and not only wait for someone to either open it or not open it, but also look and listen to the surroundings as they knock on the door. Sometimes, after knocking, they would hear someone shuffling around in the house. This would be a clear indicator that someone was inside and they would not end up burglering that home. Many ex-burglars also reported that they would listen to hear if a dog was inside. If a dog wasn’t inside, they would take this as a cue to go in and start to steal from the home. The last thing that many burglars look for when using their knock on the door trick is for a clear sign of a home security system. A home security system is one of the easiest ways to deter burglars. One of the ex-burglars said that when he was knocking on the door, he would specifically look for either signs that said the home was protected by a home security system, or he would look for wires and cameras around the door that indicated a home security system was installed.

If the burglar doesn’t hear anyone inside, hear a dog, or see any indication of a home security system, they will begin to start peeking around in the windows. This was reported as a way to see if the home had anything worth stealing. Burglars look out for expensive stereo systems, jewellery trees, and other expensive looking items. If the windows were closed or obstructed, the burglars were less likely to take a chance on the home, because they didn’t know if they would even get anything good out of it. That means that keeping your windows closed, locked, and covered is a good way to deter potential burglars. 

One of the key places that needs to be protected by a home security system is windows. That includes all windows. Many of the ex-burglars said that if the door was not unlocked, they would just enter through one of the windows. Along with stating this, the ex-burglars said that it is imperative to protect your second story windows as well as the first story windows. This is especially true if you have something expensive on display that a thief may be very motivated to steal. One of the ex-burglars that was interviewed stated that one of the things he would do to rob from a house would be to climb up the second story windows, which were rarely protected. He would climb up poles and other things around the windows. From there he would easily be able to enter the home. 

Another thing that burglars can do is bash poor quality locks off of doors. This is something that can be seen in multiple burglary cases. The thieves simply take a heavy object, like a crowbar or rock, and bash at a door until the lock comes off. This is a much more labor intensive and loud process than some of the other methods that have been mentioned. Even though it is a lot more risky to try and rob a house this way, it is still done. The poorer the quality of the lock the easier it is to bash the lock off or apart. This means that it will be a lot easier for the burglar to get in and will attract a lot less attention than if the lock was poor quality and hard to break. 

One of the best things that the ex-burglars said for protecting your home from getting robbed was to have a home security system with alarms. Many of them stated that windows and any other area that could easily be broken into should have an alarm covering it. If a thief breaks a window and an alarm goes off, they will assume that the police have been called and they won’t bother to stick around. They will most likely run off with at best the first thing they could see to grab.

Breaking Locks Before The Bad Guys Do

In order for a home security system to keep a home safe from burglars, they need to make sure that their security system is actually burglar proof. Depending on the price of valuables in a home, people may need differing levels of security systems. Some people may be able to get away with a basic home security system, but some people who keep highly expensive things in their home need something more. In order to protect these people, home security companies must come up with more and more intricate home security systems. These can involve many different safeguards to prevent burglary. Good home security companies will also test their systems to make sure that they are actually burglar-proof. A simple system won’t have that many ways a burglar could dismantle it, so it can easily be tested. More complex systems, however, need more complex testing. 

There are companies out there that are willing to do this type of testing. They don’t do it for just home security, they do it for any and all security, including banks and other companies. It doesn’t just have to be a company that uses these services to test their security system, home owners can have someone test their systems personally as well. 

The process is very simple, the person or company will hire someone to break into their home and tell them how they did it. When it’s a home security company that is doing this, they usually will try to fix whatever flaw in their system allowed for this to happen. If it’s a personal homeowner doing this with the home security system they purchased, they may want to switch home security providers if the robbers are able to get in. You do not want to be left with an easy to break in home, especially if you have a large amount of highly priced valuables stored in your home.

Being Reactive With Security

Many companies and homeowners choose to be reactive when it comes to securing their things. They choose to only get a home security system, or any type of security system, only after they have been broken into or robbed. This is a reactive way to look at a problem. In order to be proactive, homeowners should make sure that they are keeping their homes secured with a home security system. By doing this, they will most likely never have to face the consequences of being robbed in the first place. After the robbery has taken place, there is no way to reverse it. The best thing that you can do as a homeowner is prevent that from ever happening in the first place.

Awareness For Home Invasions

One of the most important things that needs to happen for robberies to go down in the Chicago area is for the residents of Chicago to be educated on robberies, how they work, and how to prevent them. A neighborhood that has a home security system in every home will be a much safer neighborhood than a neighborhood with only a few houses that have home security systems. 

Another important thing for home owners to know is to know when to speak up about suspicious activity. If you see someone you don’t recognize peaking around in your neighbors windows, 

A Dangerous City

Chicago, Illinois, is known to be one of the dangerous cities in the United States. In the last year of 2020, the city of Chicago has faced over 600 cases of robbery, burglary, and theft. As you can see, it can be a very dangerous place to live. That is where home security comes in. Home security has the ability to warn a homeowner if they have been broken into and in some cases will evel alert the local police department of the break in. Due to the danger of living in the city of Chicago, it’s imperative for homeowners to purchase some form of home security.

Easing The Stress Of A Break-in

Having your home broken into can be one of the most stressful experiences for a homeowner. After working hard for everything in your home, someone has come and stolen it all for you. One of the first things that you should do after being broken into is to purchase a home security system. The home security system will be able to help prevent a break-in from happening again in the future. This is the most important thing that you could do after a break-in. Preferably, you will already have a home-security system and will not have to worry that much about break-ins in the first place.

Another thing that will ease the stress of a break-in is to keep track of all of your valuables. Should you ever get broken into, make sure that you know which items are at risk for being stolen. Even if you have a home security system, a robber may attempt to grab at least one thing before they get caught. This may lead to you thinking that you didn’t actually have anything stolen. This is usually not the case. Even with a home security system, there is a risk that the robber attempted to or did steal something. To prevent losing your things forever, keep a list of what is valuable in your home that may get stolen in a break-in.

Another aspect of home security that can ease your mind is motion sensor lights. These lights turn on anytime someone walks past them. If someone walks past these lights, they will automatically turn on and shine on the intruder. This will usually deter someone from stealing at night since the lights are on them and they will be easily visible. It’s also a good way to have a convenient form of security. Instead of an obnoxious alarm going off every time one of your neighbors walks by, a light will simply be shined. This makes it so that regular people walking past will not be annoyed, but the thieves and robbers who are trying to break in may be deterred.

Technicalities Of A Home Security System

A home security system is made up of multiple components. When you purchase a home security system, you’re purchasing exactly that: a system. That means that it will not just be one security measure added to your home, there will be multiple added to a few different places in your home. Some of the places where these components can be added includes locks, doors, and windows. These areas are some of the most commonly broken into areas in a home. When someone is trying to rob a home, there will be looking for easy access points. This means that they obviously will not try and bust through the walls, they will be looking for areas that can be easily broken into. Many burglars will attempt the door first, as many people will actually leave their doors unlocked. If they can’t get in through the door, they will try to enter through the windows. This is another area of a home that people will commonly leave unlocked. If they can’t open the window, they will break it and enter the home that way. Burglars have also been known to bash locks off of doors and windows. That is why many home security companies focus on the doors, locks, and windows of a home. 

Some of the security devices that a home security company may install in your home includes motion detectors, lighting, alarm systems,  and security camera systems.  Each of these devices has a differing level in its ability to protect your home. Some of the devices are more protective than others. For example, having a lighting system is only a small form of home protection. This may be all someone needs, however, if they live in an area with barely any home break-ins. Having an alarm system provides a lot more deterrence to any potential burglars. Along with this, someone who requires a lot more security may utilize all of the mentioned home security devices instead of just one or two. The most comprehensive security system will include all of the security devices we have mentioned.

Home Security Market

One thing that is very promising for home security is the fact that the home security market is growing. This is very good news for all homeowners, as the more home security there is, the less break-ins there will be all around. When the majority of homes are protected by home security, burglars will be less likely to attempt to steal, as there is a greater chance that they will get caught. Statistics show that even having just a few homes protected by a security system in a neighborhood leads to an overall decrease of robberies in all homes in the surrounding neighborhood.

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Questions about ADT or Home Security? Contact Us At Copperhead Home Security, 2035 W Grand Ave, Chicago, IL, 60612 (773) 295-0032