Protect This House

Hello Spokane, WA and the World. Please Listen Up....

Unless you’ve been stranded on a tropical island with Wilson, you have likely seen or heard the many advertisements about connected security devices available to protect your home.  They claim to prevent unwanted visitors from lingering at your doorway, looking to see if they can break in and make off with your treasures.  One such products is the Ring Doorbell, that has a Wi-Fi video camera embedded in the unit so the owner who, who could be lounging poolside in Maui, can see and speak to the visitor like they’re home and talking via intercom.  Cool stuff for sure.  Certainly, products like this are good in theory and provide comfort to many people while away.  With a new-found sense of security, many buy these devices, install, and sleep easily. 

At the same time, many people prefer to shop via their fingertips or device screen on sites like Amazon, Target.com, and every other vendor. This amazing advancement enables your new stuff to quickly ship right to your door so you don’t have to leave your house.  We’ve all seen UPS, FedEx, USPS, and others constantly driving through our neighborhoods leaving the boxed goodies on doorsteps of homes with nobody home to accept. Your new and desirable stuff sits outside like a cat that got out, and wants in, waiting for a hungry coyote.  Like many of you, my home and family finds that Amazon and other sites have truly helped us “get what we need” without driving to the old brick & mortar store.

Then people like me come along to burst your bubble.  Why you ask?  Does Steve have a “side hustle” and now prowls neighborhoods, or goes shopping on doorsteps trolling for packages that may include worldly treasures, stacks of cold hard cash, or jewels?  Sorry, if you put $20 down on that, you lost $20. 

As a Realtor, part of my gig is walking neighborhoods like yours and mine, inviting people to bring their friends to an Open House I’m hosting, or to see my new listing where they can entice their best buds to come see, buy, and become their new neighbor.  So, I walk, and knock on plenty of doors… and guess what happens?  I find plenty of Ring doorbells, security cameras, and other such devices that make people feel safe.  But I also find that from the hundreds of doors I’ve knocked on and encountered one of these “talking doorbells,” not one person has ever talked to me through the darn thing.  If I was a thief testing to see if someone was home, what should I think?  Even Ferris Bueller had his doorbell rigged to a recorded message.  If you are going to buy one of these, at least talk to the person at your door occasionally.  You just might save yourself from making an insurance claim. 

I also see countless homes that have packages stacked at the door, another clear sign nobody is home.  And an easy score for any hoodlum, low life, or opportunistic thief.  If you are expecting a delivery and cannot be home to bring them in, talk to a neighbor and ask them to bring in your packages.  You will likely return the same favor soon.  Or call a relative who can come by, bring them in, and save your call to Amazon, Target, and the others claiming your package never arrived.  Also having someone come by and park their car in your driveway for a few minutes could deter a thief.

To wrap this up, be smart, be safe, and PROTECT THIS HOUSE people.  Like it or not the Holidays are closer than you think, so change your ways now and you will have less stress later.