You always double check that you locked the door. You never let strangers in behind you when you arrive home. You always keep the windows by your fire escape closed.
But sometimes, you arrive home with a huge bundle of groceries. Your new neighbors looked like they were moving something heavy, so you didn’t want to be rude and close the door in their face. Or it was the first night of fall, and you were craving that crisp breeze through the apartment. Either way, the entrance to the apartment community doesn’t always stay close allowing for any outside person to walk in the property.
When you’re living in an apartment, especially in a bigger city, you can do whatever you can to keep yourself safe, but the responsibility of building security often falls on the building community as a whole. So how do you keep yourself, and your apartment, safe?
While many buildings may not allow you to change the locks, we’ve found that some independently owned buildings will turn a blind eye, especially if your building has been compromised before. This is where a smart lock is helpful. You can provide a code to the maintenance department, if they need to come in when you’re not home. You can also keep track of when they come and go.
When you’re living on the ground floor, or you have windows facing a fire escape, using a window and door sensor that clocks when the windows are opened can provide peace of mind.
If you’re keeping valuables in your apartment, having a safe is always a good idea. Having a safe monitor is even better, because it can detect if there has been any disturbance to the security of the safe.
Overall, apartment living is not for everyone. But if you do find yourself in one, you just need to ensure that your first line of defense – the doors and windows – are tightly secured. Along with that, there are ways to keep yourself, and your building community safe. All it takes is a little bit of smart security technology.
