Home Alarm Systems

[Hugglebuggles 60]

As you know, my husband Bill and I just bought a house and moved in this past weekend. Everything has been great thus far- the neighborhood is nice and quiet, our neighbors are friendly, and there really isn't a lot of activity on the street.

Despite that I've been barraged with calls from people wanting to sell us a home alarm system. In the past 2 days 4 different companies have called, and not just once, several times! Everyone has been trying to convince us that having an alarm system is a complete necessity.

The home we just moved out of in Denver (my inlaws place) had a pretty extensive alarm system. This is something Bill has had all his life but something I definitely wasn't used too. Back home in Canada we never had an alarm system in all the houses we lived in, I guess we just didn't see it as something we needed. I don't really remember any friends or family members having one either, it just wasn't a common feature of our small town. In my short experiences with the system in Denver, they are nice devices to have, as they provide extra security and some peace of mind, but they are also pretty inconvenient and annoying at times.

So, I want to know exactly how common home alarm systems are.

Are we crazy for not having one? Do you think getting one is a waste of money or important to have?

And, are they more common in the USA then back home in Canada? Because 5 years ago living in Welland Ontario I really wouldn't have given this a second thought...

Oh! My poll worked!

Edited March 5, 2010 by Hugglebuggles

[Malrothien 6]

Here in Orlando, almost every house in our neighborhood has an alarm system installed.

In Vancouver, we didn't have an alarm, though our condo was wired for one. However, you had to have a FOB to get into the building and our doors were metal.

[Danu 19]

We didn't have one in Canada, though there have been times we were thinking about getting one. I'm in an apartment right now, so don't have one atm, but I'm thinking about it once we're out in a house of our own. Even if its a quiet street I have never trusted being alone. We lived in one of the better neighbourhoods in Kingston and we still had burgleries from people breaking into cars and basement windows now and then, and once when I was little some guy came to the door of my Grandma's house in the middle of the night. She lived in the middle of nowhere, her 2 neighbours were other relatives of mine so we don't even know where this guy came from, but I was sleeping on the couch in the front room and he was pounding on the door and hollering which frightened me. Since then whenever I got home if I was alone I would grab the dogs and go through every room in the house and turn on every light. I'm terrified of someone getting in and hiding!.

[Rhiannercakes 14]

I live in Southern Cali and we have no alarm.

In Canada we had no alarm either at any of our like 6 houses.

You should look into your city's crime rate, maybe that'll help your decision.

[Hugglebuggles 60]

Well there is crime here, no doubt, but moving from a larger town like Denver to a smaller town like Colorado Springs makes the crime seem less important. Living in the metro of a big city, a home alarm system makes a lot of sense. Down here? I don't really know. I guess I don't really know enough about the city to be able to make a really good decision.

I guess it comes down to this- would I feel safer with one? Probably. Is the extra safety worth the money? I'm not really sure.

[CDAgirlMI 51]

Something better than an alarm: Dogs

There was this study done & they talked to B&E criminals & they said when they were looking into what home to break into, they would totally skip the ones that had dogs.

Plus, they make amazing companions!!

[Sprailenes 47]

I doubt any thief will fear my papillon..

[BriCar 0]

Our house in Northern California was built 12 years ago and came pre wired for an alarm system.

Never installed a system and signed up for monitoring cause it's a safe nieghbourhood.

I have heard that a security system sign alone displayed in the front of the house works pretty well.

Another nice thing is it's relatively easy to buy handguns in the US.

[trailmix 77]

Another nice thing is it's relatively easy to buy handguns in the US.

Guess it depends who is holding the gun

Anyhoo, funnily enough, this house we have just moved in to is completely wired with an alarm system. It crossed my mind at some point that perhaps we should have one - but no.

I have never had one in any house I have ever lived in (and apparently since this is my 31st move, i've lived in quite a few haha)

It's insurance. Really, what are the odds that your house will burn down? Pretty much slim to nil. But, you probably have fire insurance.

I just realized what i'm writing is not helpful at all, so i'll stop

[Danu 19]

Something better than an alarm: Dogs

There was this study done & they talked to B&E criminals & they said when they were looking into what home to break into, they would totally skip the ones that had dogs.

Plus, they make amazing companions!!

I've watched too much "It takes a theif". He bribes the dogs with meat when he breaks in and has even stollen 2 or 3. Dogs can be easily swayed lol.

One thing if you are looking into an alarm is that some house insurance places give discounts if you have a system, so it might not be as much extra money as you thought. Might want to take a look into what kind of discount you can get for having a system.

[OBX 51]

Back home in Canada we never had an alarm system in all the houses we lived in, I guess we just didn't see it as something we needed. I don't really remember any friends or family members having one either, it just wasn't a common feature of our small town.

Huggles I had a very different experience in Welland. In our second home we installed an alarm system and almost everyone on our court had one as well. When I was on my own, prior to moving to the US, I did not have one but again most of the other homes on our court had one. Having lived with and without one I prefer not to have one. My husband offered to put one in here but I am actually more nervous in the house with one. I was always on edge wondering if it was going to go off, watching the lights on the console if I was alone. God forbid if we forgot and left a window open, the breeze on the curtains would set it off!

I think if you have good exterior lighting, no heavy bushes around your windows etc. that goes a long way. I have read that in some smaller communities the local police will even come by your home to do a quick evaluation and recommend ways to make your home less inviting to break-ins.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Edited March 5, 2010 by OBX

[birdnerd 5]

One thing if you are looking into an alarm is that some house insurance places give discounts if you have a system, so it might not be as much extra money as you thought. Might want to take a look into what kind of discount you can get for having a system.

That's exactly what I was going to say! Definitely an insurance break if you have an alarm, and even more so of it's centrally monitored.

Our house has no alarm system (not that we have much to steal ), but my parents had one installed about 10 years ago when there was a rash of home invasion sexual assaults in the (relatively) near area.

[ashenflowers 5]

I didn't have one at my place(s) in Canada at all, except the last place I lived, but that's because my roommates had it installed on their house. I would take a stroll around your neighbourhood and see what things are like, or how many other people seem to have alarm systems (see if you can see the stickers or the signs around there).

I personally won't ever get one until we have a HOUSE (which we don't) that we actually own, with valuable stuff in it. If anyone tried to break into our apartment to steal stuff, I'd just laugh at them. It'd just be more of a pain in the #### for us to replace the stuff we all mostly got for free anyways

Though if anyone steals my laptop...

[Sam and Ben 2]

Our four dogs park at flying leaves... No one needs to know they're actually harmless, but they really are LOUD.

Once we move into our own place though, especially depending on where it is, I'd like it for us to find the funds to have one installed. It does provide an insurance break, which is nice, and I think I'd rather an obnoxious alarm than for my husband or I to have to pull a trigger.

[SapphireDreams 71]

When I lived in Mississauga, we didn't have an alarm, but a lot of my friends with larger houses and nicer things did. Since I lived in a neighbourhood with a lot of nice houses, but my street was not as nice, we knew that most likely the larger, nicer houses surrounding us would be the ones getting robbed etc.

In Queens, my in-laws did not have an alarm but they had metal bars on all the windows. Everyone has them in Queens.

When we get a house, I'd definitely consider an alarm system depending on what my street/neighbourhood is like.

I kind of think if someone really wants to rob you, they'll do it regardless of whether or not you have an alarm. My cousin's family had their 2 Lexus' stolen out of their garage while they were in the house sleeping with an alarm on. But they are good for piece of mind.

The other thing I would consider.. if you have a nice car in the driveway, I'd probably get one. I think that might be a signal to people that you have nice/expensive stuff inside.