Home security worries don’t stop at the front door. When our neighbors are victims of crime, or report suspicious activity, we worry about our neighborhood too.

The good news is that most of us are proactive about tackling these worries. Teaming up with neighbors is one of America’s top home security measures, according to Alarm.com research. 54 percent of neighbors say that they let each other know about suspicious activity locally. 55% of us watch each other’s homes when we travel.

When you work together and communicate, it’s easy to make your neighborhood a safer place. Here’s how to get started.

1: Get connected with your neighbors

The first step towards a safer neighborhood is getting to know everyone. Reaching out to your neighbors builds trust and makes it easier to team up on safety and crime prevention.

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When you can’t connect in person, use digital tools. If you don’t have a neighborhood Facebook group already, set one up. It makes it easy to connect with neighbors, share information about suspicious activity and local crime, and keep everyone in the loop. If your local police department has its own Facebook page, follow them for updates and advice.

More than half of Americans say that they feel safer thanks to their neighbors. Make the effort to reach out, especially if you’re new to the neighborhood.

2: Use smart security cameras to spot activity

Burglars, package thieves and door-to-door scammers often return to the same neighborhood over and over. Smart security cameras can help you and your neighbors capture these visitors in the act.

Alarm.com’s smarter video alerts can help you spot suspicious activity faster, and they’re easy to download and share via phone message, email or social media. Your video clips could provide the breakthrough that your local police department needs to identify and catch a persistent thief.

3: Get a home security system

Deterrence is another benefit of security cameras: they indicate that you’re protected by a security system. Most burglars check for alarm signs and cameras when selecting a target, and will go elsewhere if they see them.

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Your system won’t simply displace crime to your neighbors’ homes either. A study by Rutgers indicates that security systems have a wide protective effect. The more systems a neighborhood has, the less likely its homes are to be targeted. Your doorbell camera and security system sign can make your whole street a little safer.

For best results, connect with a security expert who provides Alarm.com technology. Our service provider partners protect millions of homes and communities nationwide, and make home security easy.

4: Stay connected with smart technology

A good security system will send you smartphone alerts about suspicious or unexpected activity around your home. With Alarm.com, you can include neighbors as recipients too. Your neighbor won’t want to know everything that happens around your home, but they’ll want to know if your security camera detects a person walking through backyards at night

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During vacation season, an Alarm.com-powered smart lock makes it easy for a neighbor to access your homes to feed pets or water plants. You can let them in remotely by unlocking the door from your app, or give them a user code for independent access that you can keep track of.

Find out more about Alarm.com-powered smart locks and user codes here.

Interested in Alarm.com technology for your home?

Protecting your home and neighborhood with Alarm.com technology is easy. Our service provider network includes some of the biggest home security brands and thousands of local smart home security experts. They’ll take care of everything.