A friend of mine was a Philadelphia police officer for 25 years or so. He said that by far the two most effective anti-break in measures are motion sensors on outside lights and a dog.

Lights that turn on as one walks around will spook most intruders. Any dog that barks, even a very small dog will also scare away most intruders.

That is what he told me anyhow. I don't if it is true or not. Just passing it on...

+1 on everything Dagny has posted.

We have had very similar advice from the Sheriff's Department in Loudoun County VA, (no County police there) and here in Anne Arundel County, MD.

It can't be stressed enough to get everyone in the neighborhood to call the police if the see something suspicious, something out of place, or even just something that makes them uncomfortable. Don't be afraid that it is not important and that you are wasting police time. Our police keep telling us they want us to do that.

Also, it turns out that the more calls that come in from an area causes the scheduling of more police patrols. This is what you want.

Thus, I have been known to call in, for example, a car parked in front of my house at 3 AM, lights off, engine running. . .and had a patrol car pull up behind it about 5 min. later. . . never did find out what was going on. . .

And my neighbor has called about "door to door" salesmen. Her you need a license for that, and he didn't.

As was mentioned earlier,Neighbor participation,Game camera's,& Most Important,Alerting the police of ANY Suspicious activity!Slide bolts/Goat Bells on The inside of fence/gates/Screen door's,Loud Audible Alarms,Double Cylinder deadbolts are Good!You can Glue/Silicone magnets at lower edges/rabbets on the windows,& place alarm co stickers on the windows!Tint your windows,fasten shades/drapes with velcro for 0 visibility into your home!Converse with your Neighbors,Often!Many of my Neighbors have Internet camera systems with data banks that can go back a year, if need be!Though my area isn't posted,We have Neighborhood Watch & Block captains,& Various LEO's living in the Immediate area,This is Good stuff to Establish,& To Know!

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Bottom like, get a monitored alarm installed ASAP. Think of it like insurance. The piece of mind alone might be worth it.

That's why I'm asking about the door. The other tempting entry points (out of sight, relatively quiet entry, and easily accessable) are all easy and inexpensive to harden. The door is the big problem. I can't afford $250 for a captive key deadbolt let alone the $600 it would take to alarm the house. A deadbolt keyed on both sides, while affordable, is a violation of the fire code.

And yes, I do know the normal tips about landscaping, don't advertise, and know your neighbors. Their kids are constantly sending soccer balls over the fence, and until stuff turned up missing I thought it was them.

i would think if someone was casing you home they would not have left any signs they were there,missing rope so on.i would get a alarm or sign up with ADT or some such company.real crooks know phony cameras.

Please explain how I may obtain such confidence, thanks.

Thanks for the ideas Dagny. Some great and simple ideas that I think we're going to incorporate at our house.

Some of the advice will depend on where you live. My city isn't that big bug big enough that the police won't respond to alarms and the insurance companies won't give discounts for them. There are enough that false alarms have become too many, I've tried calling the police when I heard an alarm and they get very annoyed.