Tips for Choosing the Best Houston Home Security System

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, one in every five homes will have a break-in or home invasion this year, and the statistics suggest that the chances of home invasion are on the rise. Houston home security experts consider home invasion to be inherently more dangerous than a typical burglary because a home invasion occurs when someone is at home. The right home security system, such as a monitored alarm system, can greatly decrease your chances of being a victim of a home invasion. A monitored alarm system will also reduce your chances of being injured or killed during a home invasion because alarm monitors will get emergency assistance to your home faster.

Home Invasion: The Most Dangerous Type of Burglary

Many law enforcement experts consider home invasions to be the most dangerous type of property-related crime. About 70 percent of all home invasions involve the use of a weapon, most often a knife or a cutting instrument. Nearly half the time when someone is at home during a break-in, someone in the family is injured by the intruders. Nearly one in five victims of home invasions are over the age of 60, not a surprising statistic when you consider the chances of a retired or elderly person being at home alone. Other victims include children and teens at home alone after school and stay-at-home mothers with young children.

Home Alarm Systems and Security Tips Against Home Invasions

The first step in protecting your family is to secure your property and prepare your family to be alert in case of home invasions and break-ins. These tips from Houston home security specialists can help you protect your family from burglars and intruders intent on harm.

Replace any hollow core entry doors with solid core doors fitted with heavy duty locks. Use 3-inch screws to install heavy duty lock strike plates in door frames to make it harder for burglars to get through your front and back doors.

Install a home security system that includes perimeter security. A wireless or wired alarm system that will sound or send a signal if someone opens a protected door or window is best. Make sure that your home security system covers all entry points into your home—front, back and garage doors, as well as first floor windows at a minimum, as well as any doors or windows that overlook a patio or roof that can be used to gain access to your home.

Install motion-sensor light systems to illuminate the area if someone enters your back or side yards. That’s often enough to scare off a potential burglar, especially if the area can be seen from nearby homes.

Choose a Houston alarm system that includes 24-hour human monitoring for the highest safety levels. Monitored alarm systems are far less expensive than most people think.

Teach your family to always close doors, flip the locks and arm the alarm system when they enter or leave the home. Even the best alarm system is useless if it’s not armed when a burglar breaks in.

Educating yourself and your family and protecting your property with common sense precautions and a good home security system can help keep your family from becoming just another home invasion statistic.

Three Important Reasons to Install a Home Security System

A home security system can ensure your peace of mind in more ways than one. While most people think of home security as a burglar alarm or a monitored alarm system that alerts the police if someone breaks into your home while you’re out, today’s home security systems are capable of far more. Houston home security companies often install alarm systems and security systems for homeowners who have other important reasons for wanting the added peace of mind that comes with knowing everyone you love is safe.

Elderly Parents

As people age, they face many challenges that can make it unsafe for them to live alone at home. If you have an elderly parent, consider what would happen if he slipped and fell while no one was home. How many hours might your father lie there, unable to move or reach the phone to call for help?

A home security system that includes a personal alarm can ease that concern. If your parent falls and is injured, he can simply push the button on a personal alarm device he wears around his neck or carries with him and call for help. A remote alarm monitoring station will pick up the alarm and either call you or alert emergency services to dispatch assistance. How much is that peace of mind worth to you?

Monitor Teens Coming and Going

One of the most innovative features of today’s home security systems is smartphone integration. When your keyed entry is connected to your smartphone, you can set it to let you know whenever the door is opened. For many parents, this provides an easy way to be sure that a child arrived home after school as expected. It takes the onus off your child to remember to make the phone call to let you know he’s home, and ensures that she is, indeed, calling from home. An alarm system can also make it much harder for your child to sneak in our out of the house undetected, and while every parent might like to believe that his child is an angel who’d never sneak out at night, many parents also believe that they’re better safe than sorry.

Home Alone

If you’re home alone for a good part of the day, a home security system can ensure that you’re safe and really alone in your house. A wired or wireless home security system can alert you if someone enters your house while you’re out in the yard or working in a room upstairs. By the same token, it can allow the homeowner to contact emergency services in the case of a break-in or home invasion while they’re inside the home.

As you can see, home security systems provide a great deal more than protection from burglars. If you’re in the market for a good home alarm, contact a Houston home security expert to discuss the best options for keeping your family safe.