7 Home Security Tips for Landlords

Being burgled is a traumatic and inconvenient experience. And if damage has been done to a rental property, it can be down to the landlord to ensure that repairs are made. We have put together 7 home security tips for landlords to help you deter opportunistic burglars.

7 Home Security Tips for Landlords

Locks

Check that your locks are in good order and are appropriate for the security needed. Include locks on gates, sheds and garages as well as those on front and back doors, windows and patio doors. Mortice locks fit inside the door itself and are great on front and backdoors. Rim locks or Yale locks are fixed to the door on the inside of the property and lock automatically. Multi-point locks are great for windows, especially on the ground floor as they have two hooks to hold the frame closed. Additional security bolts can be added anywhere and are often used on gates, backdoors and patio doors. Padlocks on gates, shed and garage doors are also recommended.

Adding key-operated locks on internal doors could prevent intruders from getting further into your property.

Lighting

Motion-sensor security lighting is a very popular way to deter intruders and has the added benefit of improving safety around the building. Consider putting these in parts of the property that are not overlooked by neighbours or are not visible from the road, near flat roofs, backdoors or near sheds and garages. Install them so that they are at least 2m high making it difficult for them to be tampered with.

Hedges

If you have a hedge at the front of your property cut it down to around 1.4m in height so that your property isn’t completely obscured from the road. Fences around the side and rear of the property should be around 2m high. Prickly bushes near vulnerable points will be an added deterrent.

Alarms

Alarms are very effective at deterring burglars. Be sure to choose a system that meets BSI standards. You can choose from

• audible only
• automatic dialling alarms that sound and automatically call the police
• a remote signalling alarm that also notifies a monitoring office.

Key Store

Within the property, provide a safe place for tenants to store keys that is out of sight and not by a door or window. Ask tenants not to leave spare keys under the doormat, a pot or similar place that a burglar may look.

Holidays

If your tenants are going on holiday for more than a few days remind them to set up timers for lights and if you are nearby, ask if you can call in and make inspections to ensure that post is moved away from the front door and the property is still safe, or ask if your lettings agent or a friendly neighbour will do it. Ensure that any deliveries have been cancelled and there are no milk bottles or newspapers piling up.

Of course, if the worst happens and your property is broken into, a good landlord insurance policy will provide some recompense for any damage or missing property. It is good to advise your tenants to insure their own belongings against theft too. The police advise that you record the serial number of any items that can be removed. You can do this for free on Immobilise.com, as can tenants for their own belongings, and then if found, items will be quickly reunited with you.

You might like to read our blog post about what landlords are responsible for if a rented property is burgled.