January 19, 2007, Newsletter Issue #24: Gated Communities No Substitute for Home Security
Tip of the Week
Gated communities are not a substitute for home security. Too often homeowners wrongly see gated communities and guard stations as their personal home security. Residents develop a false sense of security.
In reality, the guards routinely allow in pizza deliveries, appliance repair people and contractors.
Homeowners may naively tell the staff at guard stations their vacation schedules, even though they know little about them or their associates.
Teens who live in these gated communities even may be responsible for some of the burglaries or petty theft.
There have been a number of cases across the nation where clusters of burglaries occurred in gated communities. Once a burglar mastered how to enter one house, others were hit.
The criminal was familiar with the subdivision, and used the same method for other break-ins. Homes in gated communities often are similar in structure and design to make repeat crimes easy.
Police officials say that burglar alarms provide more reliable protection than a wall around the subdivision where you live. The most secure home protection system is an electronic one with sensors that "watch" your home continually.
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