Step 20: Security for Your New Home

Consider making your new home safer by taking some security measures:

Rekey all of your door locks

You just never know who still has a key to your new home. Better to be safe than sorry and have a locksmith rekey the existing locks on all of your exterior doors. Our recommended locksmith is Rekey Home Locks (317) 376-8334. They can rekey the locks so that the same key will open all of your exterior doors. We recommend having at least one deadbolt on all exterior doors. We highly recommend having this done the day you move in.

Install an alarm system

My favorite alarm company is Intelligent Living Solutions. They are reliable and reasonably priced. We’ve been using them in our own home for 10+ years. Plan to spend $100 – $500 on installation depending on if you want motion sensors, door and window sensors, or glass break alarms. We strongly recommend having a security system if you’re buying a single-family house or a condo below ground, on the first floor, or one which has an exterior staircase.

It can take a week or more to get an appointment, so we recommend calling early and setting it up for the day of or the day after closing. Remember, you’re most likely to be burglarized in the first week you’re in a new home. Thieves look for people moving in since they count on new residents not having their security system set up yet.

Put a peephole in your front door if it doesn’t already have one. This isn’t hard to do and can typically be installed by a handyman. If you have a sliding glass door, buy a thick wooden dowel and keep it in the door track on the floor when the door isn’t open. We also recommend adding a jimmy plate and an auxiliary lock to any patio doors.