By Ethan C. Nobles

Arkansas Realtors® Association ● This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Many of us count Christmas as the most wonderful time of year but, unfortunately, there are a number of crooks out there who feel the same way.

According to law enforcement officials, sneaky thieves just love the holiday season because people are filling their homes full of valuable gifts and more than a few folks are less than cautious when it comes to protecting those presents. Fortunately, there are a few things anyone can do to discourage would-be burglars this time of year.

For one thing, police advise locking everything from your vehicles to your homes. Most thieves, it seems, look for the easiest target – a house or car that is locked might be passed over in favor of others that are unlocked.

Also, that Christmas tree surrounded by gifts looks impressive from the street, but it could be a magnet for felons when you’re not home. Keeping those blinds closed and making your house less of a target is a good idea.

One Arkansas Realtors® Association member had a tale to tell about an incident at his home when he left town. He and his wife left on a Friday and returned Sunday afternoon to find that someone had entered their garage and had stolen their truck.

The truck was left unlocked and the garage door opener was inside the vehicle. Of course, that made it easy for the thief to open the garage. Fortunately, the door between the house and the garage was locked, denying access to the home.

The lesson here, of course, is to keep vehicles locked, conceal garage door openers and lock any door that provides access to the home. Also, watchful neighbors can certainly be an asset if you’re leaving town.

On a side note, the garage allows a lot of access to the home. Even if the door between the garage and the inside of the house is locked, a lot of people have attic access in the garage by way of a trap door and descending ladder.

Most crooks aren’t too worried about property damage if they’re out stealing and it’s typically a simple matter to stomp through the roof and access a home from the attic. It’s worth your while to think about how to best make your garage secure as security experts will tell you that area of the home is often neglected when people are thinking about safeguarding their homes.

There’s some more advice from the police on the subject of garages. If you’re entering one at night, make sure you get the door closed and that you’re alone before getting out of your car. Some crooks, it seems, have adopted the strategy of slipping in garages when a homeowner approaches and hits the garage door opener.

Police say the primary thing to keep in mind during the holiday season is to always think of the best way to become less of a target for thieves. Locking doors, closing blinds are easy ways to protect and conceal your possessions.

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House to House is distributed weekly by the Arkansas Realtors® Association