Renting an apartment or planning to look into some Orlando apartments can be an invigorating experience. It might be your first time living on your own or you may be in a brand new city with a whole new set of neighbors and friends to meet. With so many new and exciting events in your life, it’s easy to forget that inexperience with a new place can leave you open to potential danger.
It’s important, as a renter, to make sure your living space is protected at all costs, whether that’s achieved by closely inspecting your building, storing some pepper spray in your apartment, or simply getting insurance coverage. Here are ten ways you can keep your apartment safe.
Research the area
Before you move into your building, take a closer look at the surrounding area. How do nearby buildings look? What do crime statistics show for the area? How safe is it to be out early in the morning or late at night around your building? Knowing this basic information is essential for staying safe.
Check the quality of your building
Before you sign a lease, you should inspect the outside of the building along with your apartment. This inspection should include checking the locks on doors outside, the lighting outside of the building, the interior lighting at the building’s entrance, the security of building entryways, and more. It should be apparent that only tenants can get into the building, ensuring you and your apartment remain protected.
Find your emergency exits
Are there enough emergency exits in the building and are they close to your apartment? An emergency exit is often needed when you least expect it, either due to a tripped fire alarm or a true fire breaking out in the building. You don’t want to take your chances under either circumstance.
Change your locks
When first moving into your apartment, it’s a good idea to change your locks—it’s unlikely that your landlord changed the locks from the time the last tenant left. Talk to your landlord about changing the locks. It will come at your own cost, but it’s a great way to ensure your apartment remains safe. If you change the locks, you’ll need to inform your landlord because your lease will likely state that they need a copy of the apartment key.
Get a door jammer
An apartment door with a single lock might not feel the most reassuring. To enhance your peace of mind, you should invest in a door jammer. When properly placed against the inside of your door, this device will keep unwanted strangers out and make it nearly impossible for any person to open your front door.
Introduce yourself
While you don’t need to be best friends with your neighbors, it’s a good idea to become acquainted with them. Not only will they become aware of your presence, thus letting their own guard down around you, but they’ll also become more helpful in letting you know about occurrences around the building. Furthermore, it’s a good idea to have friends around just in case you need something.
Store a self-defense weapon
You might not always be 100-percent safe while in your apartment. You should have a self-defense weapon nearby in the event that an intruder breaks into your home. While many people will immediately think to purchase a handgun, this might not be the best idea. Statistically, it’s more unsafe to keep a gun in your living space. Firing a gun isn’t as simple as shown in movies and television—a gunshot in a closed space can cause permanent hearing loss.
Effective non-lethal weapons include pepper & mace sprays and stun guns & tasers, all of which allow you to incapacitate an aggressor while remaining a safe distance away. Batons are another great option, whether a traditional baton or a stun baton, as they’ll provide you with a physical device in-case you are physically engaged.
Install a camera
Renting an apartment comes with limitations, the most obvious being that you will not be allowed to make renovations to your living space. Drilling will not be allowed in the walls and appliances cannot be changed without permission.
If you can’t install a security camera into the wall, why even think about getting one?
Well, you can purchase a small, non-invasive camera for the inside of your home. Sometimes referred to as nanny cams, you can place these simple cameras near your front door or windows to protect your apartment, ensuring you capture an image of any intruder for the police.
Get a personal safe
Important documents should be stored in a difficult-to-reach place. Documents can include banking information, your social security card, and your birth certificate. While a robber might just grab your most expensive digital items, they may also reach for personal documentation—it’s an easy way to steal a person’s identity. An inexpensive in-home safe can help you protect essential documents from falling in the wrong hands.
Invest in Renters Insurance
Even if you take all of the previous precautions into account, something can still go wrong: someone might find a way into your apartment or a broken water valve may flood your apartment. Renters insurance is the best way to protect yourself for unpredictable damage to your property. For a relatively cheap price each month, you can protect your possessions from unsuspecting damage and theft.
Protecting your apartment doesn’t have to be a huge ordeal. With a little foresight, either by getting to know your neighbors or purchasing a stun gun for self-defense, you and your possessions can remain safe inside of your apartment.
