Homeowners Protect Property From Summer Break-Ins

The summer sun is often an excuse for families to travel.

Snowbirds head back to their first homes before returning to the desert in the fall.

But local authorities are warning homeowners to take extra precautions before leaving their property — burglars could be out in force.

“On this particular street, there’s at least four on this side that are second homes and are never here,” said JoAnne Snyder, a Palm Desert resident.

In the 13 years she’s lived in her neighborhood, Snyder said only two homes have been robbed.

She credits the neighborhood watch program for keeping the area safe — residents also do their best to make it look like they’re home, even when they’re not.

“Almost everybody has lights on all night long,” said Snyder.

“Tell a neighbor that you’re going be leaving for the weekend — going on vacation,” said Ben Guitron, with Indio Police Department

“That’s the best thing that you do, you just don’t let newspapers and throwaway papers stay,” said Snyder.

Snyder and many of her neighbors also have security signs in the front of their homes, trying to detract any potential burglars.

She also recommends that you do not leave your garbage cans out in front of your home — a clear sign that no one is home.

She recommends that you have someone pick them up and put them in your backyard.

It might also be wise to invest in an alarm system, authorities said.

Bryan Cochran is the CEO of Custom System Technologies in Indio, and he recommends purchasing a wireless system that “uses no phone lines,” he said. “It’s all via SMS text messaging, which means your cell phone can actually arm and disarm (it) anywhere in the world that you get text messaging.”

That’s major plus for residents in the desert, seeing that people often shut their phone lines off when leaving for extended periods of time.

“It can be during a total power outage, this thing will still transmit signals via SMS to the central station — our monitoring station and the homeowner,” said Cochran.

Nine out of 10 break-ins could be prevented if homeowners took steps to “burglarproof” their homes, according to the Insurance Information Institute.

State Farm Insurance agent Rita Pescador said renters aren’t out the woods either.

“The landlord insurance covers their structure,” she said. “It does not cover your personal things.”

Pescador said purchasing an insurance policy on $30,000 worth of inventory isn’t much — as low as $12 a month.

“It’s like that old saying, you know, ‘you can’t get insurance after something happens,’ ” said Pescador.