Why New Housing Estates are a Burglary Hotspot

It seems anywhere you drive in Brisbane (and surrounding areas) at the moment, you’ll see new housing estate construction sites. Whilst it’s nice seeing these new communities popping up, unfortunately, these new developments are not immune to the scourge of burglaries. In our latest blog, we’ll uncover the factors that make these new residential havens a magnet for theft and how to protect your dream home from becoming a statistic in the growing trend of neighbourhood crime

High-value targets

Burglars are spoiled for choice when it comes to theft targets on new housing estates. 

The obvious attraction is the flow of new people moving in, usually with lots of new goodies such as LCD TVs, laptops, electronics: all the things that are attractive to thieves. White goods, air conditioning units, spas, hot water systems, and kitchen appliances are also top targets.

Unfortunately, many people make it too easy by leaving out the boxes that their new TVs and appliances were delivered in. By doing this, you are advertising what you have so be sure to cut them into smaller pieces so you can fit them in your recycling bin. 

Thieves aren’t just looking for electronics and appliances, either: bricks, copper wiring and other building supplies are all high-value targets on building sites. Timber, slate roofing tiles, electrical cables and wiring, and trade tools are other items most often stolen from building sites, according to Neighbourhood Watch.

Limited security

Often when you first move into a newly built home, locks and fences, security doors and alarm systems have not yet been added.

It’s human nature, but unfortunately, people often don’t upgrade their home security until they’ve been victims of a break-in or have heard of one nearby. Here are a few ideas to consider:

• Consider installing sensor lights from the start of the build
• Make sure the house looks lived in and invest in visible signs of security
• Display an alarm system or other home security measures that can be seen from the street.
• Update home and contents insurance, so that you are not vulnerable if break-ins occur during the building stage
• Display visible after-hour contact details so that neighbours or police can immediately contact the builder and homeowner if something occurs

If you’re still in the process of building your home, you can email your house plans or product measurements and one of our security consultants can give you a quote based on these details provided, which will be subject to a final onsite measure

Less Neighbourhood Vigilance 

Houses being built in new estates are often surrounded by vacant lots. Local residents nearby have not had the time yet to form relationships with their neighbours, so there is less mutual looking out for each other.

Housing estates are also rife with moving trucks. An opportunistic thief could simply sit across the street, watch everything being unloaded from the moving trucks, and make their move later if they like what they see.

Use the free website How Safe Is My Place? to identify your brand-new home’s weak points, so you can take the appropriate security measures.

It’s easy for thieves to blend in 

New housing estates are full of tradies working on constructing and fitting out brand-new builds. Often thieves can be hidden in plain sight among the many sparkies, chippies, plumbers and painters. A thief can be perceived as a tradie on new housing estates as they’re less likely to look out of place than in more established areas.

Many thefts can occur before the house is occupied, with hot-water services and appliances stolen, while some thieves use equipment such as angle grinders to get into houses. To people nearby, the sound of an angle grinder doesn’t seem out of place compared with the sound of glass smashing.

A good idea is for both builders and owners to introduce themselves to local residents. Neighbours can then more easily identify strange persons and suspicious behaviour. You should also keep an eye out for people loitering around the site after other workers have left, equipment noise like angle grinders coming from the site outside construction hours, and strange vehicles regularly driving around the area.