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It does not matter what type of real estate you bought, whether it is residential or commercial – you will want to keep it secure. If it is a house or an apartment you bought for yourself and your family, it goes without saying that you will want to make it as difficult as possible for burglars to break into. The same goes for a commercial property because no one has the time and the money to deal with the costs of being burglarized and having one’s inventory stolen.

So, how does one ensure that their newly-bought real estate is secure?

Learning more about the neighborhood

This is probably something you have done before buying the property, but it is still very important to do. Namely, you will want to find out how safe the location of your new property is. The reason why you will want to do this is because this will directly determine how much security you need. For instance, if it is a particularly safe residential neighborhood where burglaries almost never happen, you will not have to invest that much in security. On the other hand, if your new commercial property is somewhere downtown, it is probably an unsafe neighborhood and you might want to really beef up the security features.

Talking to experts

One of the best ways to start securing your new real estate is talking to experts who can come and inspect your property. In many places and neighborhoods, you can invite the local law enforcement agencies to come and check out your property, perhaps give you rundown of the neighborhood. You can also hire the services of a specialized security agency and have them inspect your new property, show you the weak points, give their advice on what you can do. These services are usually not expensive and you might even find someone (if you call up the police) to do it for free. This is especially useful for people who know little about security systems.

Changing the locks

It goes without saying that the first thing you will want to do is change the locks on your new property. For one, you will want to make sure that the previous owner and anyone else they might have given their keys to are now unable to enter your new real estate. Moreover, this is the perfect chance to upgrade the doors and the locks.

Most homes and a large number of commercial properties still use standard commercial locks that most locksmith professionals will agree are not enough. You should install doors with deadbolts and locks that are more resilient than the standard stock ones. This is also the right time to install locks on entrance points that might lack locks, such as windows and back doors.

A security feature that more and more people are going for today are electronic locks that do not use traditional keys. If they are built properly and from quality materials, they can be an upgrade since they are much more difficult to circumvent by burglars. They can use passwords, keycards and even biometric data instead of keys, making them a more difficult task for burglars.

 Alarm systems and video door phones

The next line of defense should be a high-quality, state-of-the-art alarm system. The good news is that alarm systems have become more affordable over the last few years and you can get a great system for the price that was once impossible. You will also be glad to hear that newer alarm systems are much better than the old ones. They do not go off for no reason and they can be monitored via your smartphone when you are not at home.

Video door phones are also a great security feature, especially for households where children stay home alone often and also for commercial properties. They allow you to see who is at the door so that you know whether to open or not. Most of the modern ones have infrared cameras so they work even at night.

Video surveillance – serious security

If you are really, really serious about your new real estate’s security, you will definitely install a video surveillance system as well. A video surveillance with have a set of cameras around the property and a console, a screen where you will check the footage. Modern surveillance systems have in-built hard drives that can store hours of footage and they often also include motion sensor lighting which is a crucial part of these systems.

A video surveillance system is a great deterrent because burglars hate them. They hate being captured on camera and they will usually avoid properties with video surveillance altogether. For commercial properties, a video surveillance is almost a must, while it is quite useful for residential properties as well.

Closing word

As you can see, there is a lot that you have to do when securing a newly bought real estate, but once you set it all up, you just have to be smart and you should have no problems with burglars and break-ins.

Images courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons

Author: James D. Burbank is a marketing professional from Sydney, Australia. He has been blogging for more than a year and he is always ready to learn and share his insights in real estate, business and home decor.