Your home is your sanctuary. It is where you can go to feel safe, protected, and secure without having to worry about the safety of your family. Sadly, the FBI Crime Reports show that nearly 2.5 million burglaries happen every year. Out of those 2.5 million, 66 percent of them are home burglaries. The FBI also reports that the average burglary victim loses about $3,000. To make matters worse, the solve rate for burglaries remains extremely low—around 13 percent.

This leads us to the question: How can we protect our homes from potential burglary attempts. Luckily, there is an easy answer to the question. There are several home security devices that have been shown to decrease your odds of becoming a victim of burglary. Some tools will even help to increase the chances of catching the bad guys after a burglary. These five home security devices are must-haves in order to protect your home and your belongings from burglary.

1. Wifi Door Sensor A study done by the University of North Carolina Charlotte says, “Most burglars reported entering open windows or doors or forcing windows or doors open. About one in eight burglars reported picking locks or using a key that they had previously acquired to gain entry.” The study focused on interviewing incarcerated burglars and studied how and why they chose to break into a house. Some burglars will walk up to a house and knock on the door (or ring the doorbell) before breaking into the house to make sure that the house is empty before they try to enter. Still, a majority of burglars will use the front door since a surprising number of homeowners forget to lock their doors before they leave the house. Leaving the door unlocked welcomes the burglar into the house since they don’t have to do anything fancy in order to get inside.

This is where a wifi door sensor becomes important. Since most burglars use the front door to enter a house, using a wifi door sensor can prevent them from getting inside undetected. A wifi door sensor is essentially an alarm for your door that is able to connect to a wi-fi network. The sensor is placed on the door with a double-sided adhesive and is connected to a paired sensor in the door frame. When the door is closed, the wireless door sensor connects and creates a current. When the door is opened, the current is broken, and an alarm is triggered. Since it relies on the electrical connection between the two sensors, there is no way to trigger a false alarm. This means that the sensor is extremely accurate. So, if someone opens the door to the house while the alarm is armed, the alarm will be set off. Since the alarm is connected to the wi-fi network, you will be sent a text from the alarm alerting you to the situation.

In most cases, the alarm from the wifi door sensor will scare the intruder away. However, if they stay, the cops will be on their way to corner the intruder before any real damage is done. This keeps your home safer and more secure.

2. Outdoor Security Cameras An outdoor security camera is one of the main home security devices that can help to catch a burglar after a burglary. Outdoor security cameras can increase your chances of catching the burglar by 40% if you use the device correctly. When installing an outdoor security camera, make sure that it is angled away from the house in order to see the front of the burglar as he or she approaches the house, rather than pointing it at the back of the person as he or she approaches. You should also install the camera at about seven feet in height to get the most range out of the camera. You can install it near the front door, the garage door, or anywhere else where you feel that it captures the best angles of the home.

Outdoor security cameras can also help to deter criminals. Since outdoor security cameras are installed outdoors, they are in plain sight. They can be seen as the burglar is approaching the house and, if the camera has motion detection, the camera will begin recording the moment the intruder steps onto the property. This gives you an advantage because it allows you to see them as they get closer to the house. If the motion sensor camera is smart, the camera will send you a notification when the motion detection is triggered. You will then be able to access the live footage from the video on your smartphone.

3. Doorbell Camera Similar to why a home would need a wireless door sensor, you should also consider installing a doorbell camera to the front door. A doorbell camera replaces the old doorbell and adds smart features that help to protect your home at all hours of the day. Smart doorbell cameras combine features from the door sensor and outdoor security camera to ensure that your home is safe.

The doorbell camera can be accessed remotely from your mobile phone through the smart app. When the doorbell camera senses movement, it starts recording and sends a notification to your phone that someone is at your door. Using two-way audio, you can then communicate with the person at the door and access the possible threat of the person. If the person is a friend or neighbor, you can safely leave the app. If you don’t know the stranger at the door, you can watch through the camera for suspicious activity to make sure that the person isn’t a threat.

4. Indoor Security Camera Indoor security cameras help you to monitor the inside of your home. The device lets you keep an eye on everything inside. This includes pets, the door window, young children, and babysitters. Many homeowners feel more comfortable knowing that they can check what's going on in their home with their indoor security camera. Additionally, by having both indoor and outdoor cameras installed, you are making sure that a wider area of your home is protected.

When looking for an indoor security camera, there are a few things that you want to make sure to look for. First, you should look for something that is wireless. Wireless cameras are easier to move and rotate since you are able to move them from room to room with limited hassle. They are also easier to connect to a smart device or pair with your smartphone. Wireless cameras use batteries instead of chords, making the camera look more natural in the room and helping you to avoid the frustration of hiding wires behind furniture. Here at Cove Security, our indoor security camera prolongs battery life by relying on motion detection. The PIR motion detection uses a small amount of battery to stay on all day and all night, meaning that you’re getting more from your indoor security camera.

5. Window Sensors Door and window sensors are some of the most important products you can have in your home. Door and window sensors provide vital security to homes all over the country. The window sensor is a device that can be used in a variety of situations since there are two types of window sensors. The first type of window sensor is the sliding window sensor, which is similar to a door alarm. The sliding window sensor can be placed on any window that opens. This includes sliding glass doors, awning windows, basement windows, and bay windows. As long as the window will open, the window sensor will work to protect the window. When the window is opened, the sensor will trigger an alarm.

The second type of window sensor is the glass break detector. The glass break detector works best on the window on a door or other window that doesn’t open. The sensor can be placed in a room rather than directly on the window itself. This lets the sensor cover multiple windows in the same room and can be installed using double-sided adhesive tape instead of wires.

Using various types of sensors can help to protect every window and door in your home rather than only protecting a select few. For example, by using a glass break sensor in a room without a door sensor, you will create a door/window sensor for any doors in the same room. It helps to make the room safer and more secure.

6. Additional Smart Home Features To maximize your home security, it is a good idea to utilize all smart home features that are available to you. If you have a regular garage door, consider replacing it with a smart garage door. You can program window and door locks to automatically lock after a short period of time to make sure that the windows and doors in your home never stay open for too long. You can open and close smart devices remotely from the mobile app on your phone as long as you have a smart wi-fi connection.

Most smart home devices are easy to install and easy to use. Choose the smart life buy purchasing a smart hub of equipment and other gadgets to help protect your home. Check out our apartment security system