You may have just bought a house and have no idea how many keys are still out there. You may be remodeling, handing access to workers, replacing a worn lock, or getting ready to leave town for two weeks. Sometimes the reminder is simpler. A house down the street was broken into, and now you are looking at your own doors differently.

Each of these is a good moment to make your home harder to break into, and each one calls for something a little different. The sections below are arranged by situation, so you can go straight to the one you are in.

How a burglar chooses a house

A break-in is usually a quick decision made from the street. The person wants a house that seems empty, where nobody will see them, and where they can get in and out fast.

Anything that interrupts one of those three things can deter a burglar. A car in the driveway suggests someone is home. A front door in full view of the neighbors means being watched. A solid, locked door means time and noise. Most home security improvements come back to those three things.

When you move into a new home

You do not know how many keys to your new house exist. The previous owners, their relatives, a cleaner, a contractor and the agent’s lockbox may each have had one. The first week is the time to reset who can get in, so work through this list before or just after you unpack:

When you are building or remodeling

Construction can make a house easier to enter and more tempting to target. Doors and windows may be missing for days, tools and new appliances sit inside, and a long list of workers comes and goes.

Start by controlling access. Give the contractor a temporary keypad code or a separate key, and do not hand over your own house key. When the job ends, delete the code or have the locks rekeyed, because you cannot track every copy made during the work. If workers were given the alarm code, change that as well.

Then think about the nights. Ask the builder how the house will be closed up at the end of each day. Have appliances and materials delivered close to the day they are installed, so they do not sit in an open house for a week.

A remodel is also the easiest time to build security in, because the walls and frames are already open. Ask for these while the work is under way:

When you change or upgrade your locks

Replacing one lock is a good time to look at every exterior door. People often replace the front lock and leave the back, side and garage doors as they were. A burglar will simply walk around the house.

Have every exterior door done in the same visit, and have them set to one key, so that locking up is easy enough to do every time. Decide who gets a key and keep a count. If you choose a keypad lock, give each person their own code, so you can remove one without changing the rest.

If you are still choosing hardware, start with a comparison of the best locks to prevent home burglaries. Pay attention to the frame at the same time, because a strong lock does little in a weak frame.

When a home near you has been broken into

A break-in on your street is worth paying attention to, so ask the neighbor how the burglar got in. Houses built at the same time often have the same doors, locks and weak points, and the way in at their house may work at yours.

Check that door or window on your own house the same week. If your doorbell camera caught anything, share it with them and with the police, and let the people next to you know what happened.

Everyday habits that prevent a burglary

Good locks only help when they are used. Many break-ins need no force at all, because a door, a window or the garage was left open. The habits that matter most are simple, and they apply whether you are away for a week or for twenty minutes:

Do dogs, cameras and alarm signs deter burglars?

A dog that barks draws attention, and attention is what a burglar is trying to avoid. A dog is no guarantee, but a barking one makes a house less attractive.

A visible camera or video doorbell tells anyone approaching the door that they are being recorded, and it gives you a record if something does happen. It has to be seen to deter anyone, so do not hide it.

An alarm sign helps most when there is a real alarm behind it. Neighbors matter just as much. One who knows your routine will notice a strange car or a person at your side gate, and will call you about it.

Deterrents that work better with a little help

Common deterrents can help, but they work best when they are not the only thing you rely on. Each of the following is worth keeping, and each becomes stronger with a small addition:

Before you leave on a trip

Set the lamp timers and stop the mail. Ask a neighbor to move your trash cans and park in your driveway now and then. Lock every door and window, including the door from the garage into the house. Take the garage remote out of any car you leave behind, and tell one or two neighbors you trust how to reach you.

None of this makes a house impossible to break into. It makes yours a harder choice than the next one, which is usually enough. Texas Premier Locksmith handles the lock side of home security across Texas, including rekeys, lock upgrades and door hardware repairs, and our locksmith in Temple does the same work for homes in that area. If a break-in does happen, start with what to do after a burglary.

Moving in, remodeling or changing your locks?