You might be one that doesn't get on with next doors. Yet, you are not the only one. More than 60% people hate their neighbors. How to stay safe if living in a bad neighborhood? What to do to survive in a bad neighborhood? It's not a funny joke or dumbest question. Most of the time you never realize your neighbor could be a murder like in the Orlando nightclub shooting, and you never know when the suspicious neighbors come to you.
You may find yourself living in a bad neighborhood and struggling just to stay safe in your home or apartment. It is an unfortunate fact of economic life that the most affordable places to live are often the areas where crime rates are high and personal safety can be difficult to maintain.
In a perfect world you would simply pick up and move to a safer and more affluent neighborhood, but in the real world things are rarely that easy. In the end, it is inevitable that we will sometimes find ourselves living in a bad neighborhood, and the best we can do is take proactive measures to stay as safe as possible. No matter where you live or how long you have been a resident, here are some practical tips you can take to stay safe when living in a bad neighborhood. Protect yourself and your family with those top 5 tips.
1. Get to Know Your Neighbors, but That's Not Enough
There is safety in numbers, and simply getting to know your neighbors can be a big step toward safeguarding your personal safety. There should be hints to tell if some neighbors are nice, some are not well trifled with, and some would be dangerous to you. Always stay informed with your neighborhood.
But that's not enough. Be nice to your neighbors first if you want them to be nice with you. No matter how bad the neighborhood, getting your neighbors to band together and watch each other's backs can be a good way for everyone to stay safer.
Banding together with neighbors can be a win-win for everyone involved. From keeping tabs on one another's kids to watching one another's homes during the day, simply having the support of the people around you can be extremely valuable.
2. Join the Local Neighborhood Watch (or Start One)
You might want to take the safety in numbers concept one step further by joining the local neighborhood watch. The neighborhood watch process codifies the power of neighbors to protect one another and keep their homes as secure as possible.
You can find out about any existing neighborhood watch programs (such as Citizen Observer, Crimestoppers, Block Parent, etc.) by contacting the local police department. We've seen many checkers, finders or apps related to how to stay safe when living in a bad neighborhood.
If there is no active neighborhood watch program where you live, you might want to get together with your friends and start one.
3. Protect Yourself and Your Family with a Home Security System
It is a sad fact of life that emergency response times are often slowest in the very areas where police protection and a robust response are most important. If you live in a neighborhood where crime rates are high and gang activity is frequent, you cannot rely solely on the police to protect yourself and your family.
That is why it is so important for homeowners who live in high-crime neighborhoods and questionable parts of the city have their own protection in place. Installing a quality home security system is a must to stay safe in bad neighborhoods, and it is very important that the system you choose come with a robust 24/7 monitoring function and fast response.
Stay Protected with Security Camera Systems; 24/7 Video Recording and Monitoring; 2 Network Solutions – with or without network.
Nowadays, a high-quality home security camera system is affordable to almost all of you. Thanks to wireless technology, wireless home security systems do not require any invasive installation, so they are perfect to use in apartments and rental homes. Wireless home security systems also tend to be less expensive than their hard-wired counterparts, another big plus for cash-strapped renters. You can easily buy a security cameras system for your home online to keep yourself safer in a bad neighborhood.
4. Make Your Home Less of a Target to Keep Safe
No matter how bad the neighborhood, most criminals are still lazy and opportunistic. That means that they tend to look for the easiest target, the one with the best stuff and the least amount of protection.
To stay safe in a bad neighborhood, you can make your home and your property less tempting by not leaving valuables in your car when you park for the night. Never leave your cell phone, audio equipment is other valuables in plain sight, and always make sure your car is securely locked and the windows are all the way up.
You can also make your home or apartment a less tempting target by increasing the amount of light. Something as simple as adding a spotlight above your front door can make your home or apartment less tempting to burglars casing the neighborhood, and adding lights outside other potential entry points can help a great deal as well. In the end, you may need to look at your home or apartment with the eyes of a burglar, but you will be much safer for the experience.
If you have read our post before about how to effectively protect your home against burglars, you would get some insights to stay secure in a bad neighborhood.
5. Be Street Smart When Living in a Bad Neighborhood
Living in a bad neighborhood can be dangerous, especially when you are on foot and on your own. Even so, there are things you can do to protect yourself and make yourself less of a target.
To keep safe in a bad neighborhood, try to blend in when you do go out. Wear the same style of clothing that others in your neighborhood wear. If there is gang activity in your area, find out what those gang colors are and avoid them like the plague.
When you do go out, walk with a purpose. Walk quickly and always act like you know exactly where you are going, even when you don't. If you are new to the neighborhood, find a good map or photos of the area and study it before you leave home. Learn the layout of the streets as quickly as possible and always plan your route before you leave home. Being street smart is always a good thing to do, but it is even more critical if you live in, or pass through, a bad neighborhood.
There is no doubt that living in a bad neighborhood can be tough, but there are ways to cope with the situation as you save up and make your plans to move to a new and safer area, like Atlanta or Chicago or elsewhere. Making yourself and your property less tempting to the criminals who share your neighborhood, fortifying and protecting your home or apartment and exercising common sense when you are out and about can all keep you safer and more protected.