Tips For Better Vacation Home Security
A vacation home security varies significantly from that of an ordinary residence. Your continuous absence from the premises raises security concerns. Burglars are more likely to break into an empty home. The threats are multiplied if the place is leased. It’s great to have a vacation property to retreat to when you need to unwind.
But what happens if you’re not present? Keep these tips in mind to keep your vacation home safe from damage, trespassing, and even burglary. No worries we will also tell you about how to keep your home safe While you’re away? Read this post thoroughly then you will get the best and useful information from here.
Security Tips Doors & Locks Safety Tips
Keep in mind that any lock will be useless if installed on a flimsy door. A solid core or metal door at the entrance is ideal for holiday homes. If you’re concerned that the solid look will detract from the attractiveness of your vacation home (such as villa cottages), reinforce them with metal sheets and obtain some good locks, such as heavy-duty deadbolts and pin tumbler locks.
- Safety Recommendations for Keys
- Windows Security Tips
- Maintain Positive Relationships with Your Neighbors
- Make use of lighting
- Install a Wi-Fi-enabled doorbell
Safety Recommendations for Keys
Never keep spare keys outside, such as under a front door mat, a fake rock, or another well-known hiding spot. Giving an extra key to a trustworthy neighbor is a better idea. If you move into a new vacation home or lose your keys, you should update the door locks.
Home Windows Security Tips
The first thing you should do with the windows, which are the most common entranceways during the summer, is to make sure they are all locked. You can also use specialized window locks, sensors, and tack-strips on window sills for added security attention:
The store window is vulnerable to break-ins since anyone passing by may see if there are valuables within. Install a visible security camera inside and remove valuable items such as the piano to make it less appealing.
Maintain Positive Relationships with Your Neighbors
A reliable neighbor is more vital than you may realize. Permanent residents always have a greater understanding of the community and local security agencies than visitors. An alert neighbor is frequently more effective in emergency scenarios, such as holiday home fire safety concerns.
Ensure your neighbors know that the house is a winter/summer vacation rental, and inform a trusted neighbor that it will be vacant for a few months so that intruders are not mistaken for your visitors. Also, please leave your contact information and a spare key with him in case of an emergency.
Make use of lighting for better home security
Intruders are often deterred by keeping the house lit. You may use innovative home security technology to automate the turning on and off lights by installing intelligent lights. To deter burglars, you can install motion lights, set timers, and add lighting to gloomy sections of your property. Use lighting to create the illusion that someone lives in your second home all year.
Install a Wi-Fi-enabled doorbell home security system
Installing a smart video doorbell is another fantastic way to keep a watch on your holiday home. These doorbells are a low-cost improvement, and they have two-way audio, so you can not only see who’s at your door but also chat with visitors and delivery people.
How to Keep Your Home Safe While You’re Away?
Many aspects go into a solid security strategy, and attempting to address them simultaneously while organizing a trip can be stressful. However, if you concentrate on one part of your security at a time, the procedure will be relatively stress-free. You should be aware of the following to strengthen the security of your holiday home:
Assessment of the Risk
The first step in improving home security, whether for a holiday rental or a permanent residence, is to do a risk assessment. The fundamental formula for this sort of calculation considers the most critical threats to your property and your sensitivity to each of them.
If you’re concerned about break-ins and know that 56% of criminals enter through the front or back door (according to the FBI), you might want to invest in more security locks. In addition, since thieves seldom pick locks, the risk of becoming a victim of a lock pick is lower.
Physical access control is one of the most critical concerns in vacation rental home security. Guests are given temporary access to the property, which must be swiftly revoked and replaced after each visit.
A home locksmith can assist you in compiling a list of your most pressing threats and your property’s unique susceptibility to them. Even if you already know what type of vacation home security you require, AAA Mega Locksmith can assist you in navigating the best options available.
Maintenance
These houses, which may be left unattended during the winter or summer months, need specific care. Seasonal changes can cause a wood expansion in windows and doors and situations where a key won’t turn in a lock, all of which make locking locks more difficult.
Both continuous use and inactivity may cause wear and tear. As a consequence, maintaining a vacation house is critical to its security. To keep a lock in good working order, you’ll need to clean it often and lubricate it.
Remember that the best door lock lubricant isn’t always the same as the oil you use for other repairs. If you use the wrong lubricant, your lock may become clogged to the point where you’ll have to change locks the next time you visit your house.
If you’re renting your vacation home, having each renter use their key is excellent to ensure your holiday home’s security. When you plan for this type of maintenance, you can avoid changing locks by using Re key able locks or installing keypad door locks.
Detection
Identifying threats, thefts, and damage informs maintenance and future risk assessments. To discover and report crimes, most common crime prevention measures urge the creation of social networks such as a neighborhood home security watch.
Thanks to contemporary technology, vacation home security can now be more comprehensive than ever before. When you use WiFi door locks, you’ll always know whether your doors are locked in real time. You may also review the history of opening and closing the door to see if the house has been broken into without your awareness.
When it comes to vacation home security, the most critical detection aspect is the response. You want someone nearby to respond as soon as a danger is identified. Ascertain that your vacation home monitoring system notifies the authorities or Security Company.
Things like the specific manner of access are examples of vacation home security that may need to be recognized later. For example, determining whether your locks have been picked requires more inquiry than deciding whether a lock has been drilled or a door has been kicked in.
Documentation
You can rarely respond to an active attack in real-time, which is a disadvantage of vacation home security. An innocent individual should be documented in order to underline the necessity of doing so. Documentation is your road map to re-enforcing the security of your holiday home following an unintentional break-in.
Consider the best spots to put surveillance cameras instead of focusing on the best security camera for vacation homes. Whether the camera isn’t looking in the direction of the event, it doesn’t matter if you have the finest picture quality or the most accessible video storage.
You’re trying to secure important stuff left unattended, much like trying to avoid package theft. Surveillance technology can discourage threats, and recordings can be used to convict criminals.
For all their flaws, security cameras are excellent at prosecuting people you know, such as your neighbours or your tenants. Having a security camera installed in your vacation home is a good idea since they are the people who are most likely to be aware of your property’s vulnerabilities.
Vulnerabilities must be secured
Based on your risk assessment, home security, desired maintenance, and what you’ve learned from detection and documentation, you’ll continue to uncover holes in your vacation home security. As you run into additional problems, you’ll need to look for better solutions.
It is possible to use branded keys and patented locks to prevent contractors and renters from making illegal key copies. You may acquire scratch and shatter-resistant adhesive film if you discover that your window security is targeted by vandalism or break-ins.
Replacement of existing exterior locks with high-security door locks is a more general way to reduce overall vulnerability. Also, ensure that exterior doors and interior doors that require more security are solid core doors rather than hollow core doors.
No security system is perfect, but the less vulnerable you are to a threat, the less likely criminals, will try to compromise the security of your vacation home. Every time you increase the security of your vacation home, you’re sending a message to criminals that you’re not an easy target, and that’s the key to preventing crime.
Frequently Asked Question:
Before opting for video camera solutions, you will most likely be perplexed and concerned about two issues.
Q1: Is installing security cameras in a vacation rental home legal?
The short answer is yes, but placing holiday security cameras in locations where people expect a higher level of privacy, such as the locker room, bathroom, or bedroom, is considered an invasion of privacy. So, if you’re looking for vacation rentals in Safety Harbor, Florida, ensure your security cameras are installed correctly.
Q2: What is the best security camera/system for a vacation home?
Battery-powered models should be avoided due to the lack of remote viewing capabilities and short battery life when it comes to vacation home security. Also, if your holiday home is in a rural place where WiFi signals are frequently unstable, don’t opt for WiFi cameras.
For vacation/second homes, PoE security cameras are the ideal option. Aside from the stable signal (protection 24 hours a day, 7 days a week) and simple installation, they could be accessed remotely even if there was no Internet connection.
Q3: When I’m not at home, how can I keep my holiday home safe?
The perimeter security of a sole property is the first line of defense. You want to establish a barrier obscures the home’s visibility so it doesn’t appear vacant. Through locks, cameras, and lights, these barriers should also serve as vacation home security.
Q4: What is the best strategy to safeguard a holiday rental?
By obtaining their credit card information and identification, you reduce the chance of granting a stranger temporary access to your property. You can document the state of the property before and after your guests to avoid the awkward situation of installing internal security cameras.
Final Verdict:
A vacation home security camera or a holiday home monitoring system is insufficient for quality property protection. Even with these devices, you can only feel safe in your holiday home to a certain extent. They’re essential, but they’re not the start or finish of vacation home security.
Boost the safety of your vacation rental property by integrating locks with other detection and documentation systems. While responding to an active threat is essential for crime prevention, a vacation house is typically too far away for someone else to answer.