In the United States of America, a home burglary occurs every 15 seconds. This equates to nearly 4,800 burglaries per day. When it comes to concealing your assets, you want to be as clever as possible. Thieves have gotten more informed about the usual places individuals try to hide their valuables as the number of robberies and thefts has increased.
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Without further ado, let us delve into this post and discover the worst places to hide your belongings to avoid having them stolen.
Worst Places To Hide Valuables
1) Drawers
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Many people assume that their belongings are safe in a drawer for some strange reason. If you're one of them, you should be aware that most burglars search the drawers first for cash and valuables. They are a very common hiding spot for hiding money and other precious items. Keeping critical documents and identification papers in a drawer that is easily accessible is also a terrible idea (think of the increasing number of identity thefts). Drawers with a false bottom drawer are also a very common hiding spot.
To say the least, drawers are a risky option. In fact, they're the very worst places in the house to hide valuables. Drawers of all kinds, including dressers and office drawers, should be avoided.
One of the worst things to hide with clothing is jewelry, as it will immediately become clear that anything is in the clothing. It is noticeably heavier than the garments, has a definite, hard shape, and is capable of producing a great deal of noise.
Cash can easily slip out of your garments when the burglars hurl everything on the ground, so hiding it is not a good idea. The same may be said for storing credit cards or any other small yet precious item.
2) Bedrooms
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You shouldn't keep your valuables in your bedroom unless they are carefully and securely stored. Under the mattress is the very worst place, as it is one of the most popular places where people hide valuables.
While it is true that a thief will not want to wake up a sleeping person, this does not apply if the burglar is there when no one is at home. The only things you should keep under your mattress are personal belongings that you wouldn't mind losing.
In the same way, you should never keep valuables in your children's rooms. While this may have been a good idea in the past, it is now one of the worst ideas you could have for a variety of reasons. For starters, most children's rooms include a variety of toys and equipment that might be appealing to burglars. These can include everything from video game consoles and televisions to tablets and other gaming devices.
Because there are so many possible valuables in a child's room already, often thrown around on the floor because children don't know any better, a burglar will spend additional time in the room hunting for as much as they can.
3) The Fridge
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That's right, you read that correctly. The practice of storing valuables such as jewels and cash in the freezer is not limited to the movies. Many people conceal their valuables in the freezer by wrapping them in foil and labeling them as a variety of food, or placing them in a freezer-safe container. Burglars and thieves have gotten savvier in terms of where they seek goods. Don't kid yourself; these men are masters of deception.
The practice of hiding valuables in the freezer has been depicted in a number of films, so the possibilities of a thief peering into your freezer are fairly high.
4) Toilet Tank
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The first person to hide treasures in a toilet tank was almost certainly a genius. Who would think to hunt for cash, jewels, or other valuables in a toilet tank of all places? Most people use a waterproof container to hide their money and store it in a toilet tank. This may seem like the perfect spot but not any longer. Unfortunately, movies have popularized the practice of hiding valuables in toilet tanks.
5) Closets
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Another thing that draws a burglar's interest is a closet. While it may seem like a good idea to hide money among the clothing or a pair of trousers, checking and throwing all the clothes out of a closet takes very little time. This is among the worst hiding places you can think of especially if you're hiding something worth stealing. A secret compartment is a common feature of many closets so you may want to reconsider hiding your valuables there.
6) Medicine Cabinet
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In the medicine cabinet, you shouldn't keep anything too important. There's a potential that depending on the type of burglars you're dealing with, they'll try to steal prescription drugs from your bathroom. This would reveal any valuables you might have in your medicine cabinet, which is something no one wants to happen.
7) Laundry Basket
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Some may believe that burglars will not dig through the entire laundry, preferring instead to go to the more common, less "disgusting," and more appealing locations. They aren't even close to the truth.
Intruders have always targeted laundry baskets, and valuables stashed inside can be discovered quickly. Also, there's a chance you (or someone else) will forget about the hidden items and throw them in the washing machine with the rest of the clothes. As a result, a laundry basket is not a place where you should store any of your valuables.
8) Vases and Pots
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Empty vases and pots are among the worst hiding locations. As a result, they're convenient for storing cash and other valuables, but they're far from secure. They're easy to see, and checking what's inside is even easier.
If you have a lot of vases and only keep important objects in one of them, some robbers might overlook the one with the valuables, but it's still not a good way to hide anything significant. Smaller items can be hidden in the soil (of a real or fake plant), but you must wrap them well and bear in mind that some objects are susceptible to oxidation in a humid atmosphere.
You should also stay away from bookcases, which are much too popular hiding spots.
9) A Safe
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Keeping money and other valuables in a safe is often thought to be a secure solution. When done incorrectly, though, it may cause more harm than good.
The attention of robbers is constantly drawn to a safe. It denotes the presence of something valuable within. If you're going to use a safe, make sure it's either stationary or properly disguised and hidden from plain sight.
You can also use a portable diversion safe if you're on a tight budget. Choosing one that will mix nicely with the rest of your home's decor is a great idea. Consider using TRAVAH's diversion-safe hairbrush and bottle. This diversion safe can hold little jewelry, money, cash, keys, prescriptions, and other precious items away from plain sight. With these top-of-the-line versatile goods, you can worry less and enjoy life more!
10) Garages
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The garage is another location where you should not keep anything precious. Many expensive objects, such as power tools, car parts, and perhaps the car itself, are already stored in your garage. As a result, there's a good likelihood that burglars, particularly the more experienced ones, may target the garage.
If robbers are already in your garage, it becomes one of the worst places to store valuables such as jewelry, documents, and other valuables.
11) Anything With a Lock Should Be Avoided
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You can bet a thief will take a box with a lock with him, regardless of what's inside. He'll take it first and then figure out what's inside. Furthermore, don't keep anything in a locked filing cabinet—locks may and will be broken. Drawers or cupboards with locks are the least safe place to hide things. It is one of the most common hiding places in your house.
12) Handbags and Purses
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You might want to reconsider stashing extra cash in your closet purses. This is a bad idea.
Purses and handbags are popular among burglars because they are simple to steal and search for later. Don't keep your emergency cash in old wallets or purses. Even if you don't use them any longer, they aren't an excellent location to stash money.
Summary
You'll be able to figure out how to outsmart your opponent if you take the time to think like them. Remember that if someone dares to break into your home, they are most likely a professional thief with enough expertise and training to make the risk they are taking pay off quickly.
You can keep your valuables safe and secure by remembering what to do and what not to do. This is something you should keep in mind at all times, especially if you live in a neighborhood where burglaries are common.