Some people use their garages as extra storage for items that will not fit in the house. Others actually park their cars in their garages. Either way, leaving the garage door open for any length of time presents a security risk. This is why security experts caution homeowners to keep their garage doors closed.
Imagine living in a restricted deed community where your homeowners association (HOA) has a tendency to make rules that don’t sit well with residents. Imagine one of those rules being a requirement to leave the garage door open daily, from 8 AM to 4 PM.
That’s exactly what happened to residents of one California community a few years back. Residents of Auburn Greens in Auburn, CA were forced by their HOA to leave their garage doors open after it was discovered that one resident was allowing someone to live in his garage.
Easy View from the Street
It is not clear if the Auburn Greens rule was ever rescinded after angry residents protested. That being said, residents had every right to be upset. Leaving the garage door open offers an easy view from the street. Anybody driving or walking by can peer into open garages. What they see tells them a lot.
It turns out that burglars actually do that. An experienced burglar can get a good idea of what’s inside a house by taking a quick peek at the garage. The condition of the garage can even tell a burglar how easy it might be to break in. A messy garage suggests a careless homeowner who may not take any extra precautions against burglary.
Simply put, leaving the garage door open is an invitation to burglars. It invites them to at least think about the possibility of hitting that particular house. Again, this is why security experts tell us to keep our garage doors closed.
An Entry Point into the Home
There is yet another reason to be concerned about leaving the garage door open. In most homes, the door leading from the garage into the house is not the most secure. It is usually secured only by a flimsy handle equipped with a cheap locking mechanism.
These doors are not necessarily made to be secure. Why? Because it is understood that a homeowner will keep the overhead door closed. But when the overhead door is left open, the door leading into the home becomes a weak link in the chain.
The Garage Door Is a Big Deal
The lesson here is pretty simple: your garage door is a big deal from a security standpoint. Leaving it open for extended amounts of time creates a security risk. Moreover, it is a completely unnecessary risk. So how do you avoid it?
You start with a policy that stipulates the garage door is not to be left open except when absolutely necessary. From there, a little technology can be an immense help. Automatic garage door controllers with built-in home automation are the way to go.
Vivint Smart Home offers a smart garage door controller that can be integrated with the rest of the brand’s home automation devices. Their smart controller has the ability to monitor the position of the door and, when necessary, send an alert to remind you that the door is open. Furthermore, the door can be opened and closed remotely using a smartphone.
Hopefully, the Auburn Greens residents prevailed against the ridiculous garage door rule implemented by their HOA. If not, then the HOA continues to require residents to put themselves at risk with a rule that should not exist.
