ripped off
 

Just to give a heads up to all you out there keep an eye on your garages i have never ever had anything stolen until i moved here my garage door was open while i was cutting my grass and working on the yard and when i went inside to get a drink someone came into my garage and stole my mini mower and the charger that goes with it DAMN shut your garage doors or else.

Did you report the theft? We're still in PA and it happens often here. We put a key pad on our garage door to easily get in and out. It avoids temptation for those not so honest.

Where do you live, Aware one? Did you notice any strange cars parked? Did you report the theft? Who do you think did it? Was it where someone could easily see it? I drive by open garages all of the time and I couldn't tell you what they had in them.

People move into a 55+ community, they think their days of worrying about theft are over, they get complacent and :boom:, some low life piece of trash thug/thugs bring them back to reality. Keep your doors/windows locked, garage doors down and ALWAYS BE AWARE.

Did you speak with your neighbors?

If you want to keep garage door open Harbor Freight has a driveway alarm similar to the one for garage door obstructions. I have it set up just inside the garage, triggers when anyone one enters garage. I've seen it on sale for under $15.

You don't live here yet. You will find that these kinds of things are most unusual. Wait and see.

Thefts
 

A few years ago there was a bunch of thefts where it was determined that the thieves cased the home at night, when lights were on, and it was easy to see what was inside the house. At dusk my blinds are all closed for the night. Our villa backs up to a golf course but that is not a guarantee that someone is not casing the place out. Also, around the same time, thieves were lifting sliding doors out of their tracks and getting in to a home that way. We know it can be done because my husband on two occasions has lifted our neighbor's door out of its track to let locked-out tenants in. There are easy fixes for this issue. Let's make it very difficult for these scum bags to rob us.

The "easy fixes" include pins to prevent lifting of the door and a stick in the track to prevent the sliding.

Every time we leave the house we close our garage door and if we go out of town we lock our garage door then go out the front door and lock it with the key. Also we lock our garage door at night. For anyone who doesn't know this...there is a toggle switch on the bottom of the garage door piece outside the kitchen door or inside the garage. When the lights are green on the up and down then the garage door can be opened. When the toggle switch is turned to the right there is a red light and the garage door can't be opened.

The original post was the door was left open while in another area of the yard and not entry through a closed garage door.

As other posters have asked, did you report the incident to the police and in what village do you live? If reported, the police can do more cheeks and if not reported, should be. For those living in the vicinity, it would be helpful to know if they should be more cautious and look out for unusual vehicles or people.

If the poster could address some of the questions asked, it would be helpful for those living in The Villages and also for those of us that don't.

I'll be there FT the last week of May. You have to understand, it's just habit with both my wife and I; it's not that we don't trust people, we've dealt with the dregs of society for our entire adult lives. We're just cautious and don't leave nothing to chance.

You will need to prepare yourself for Disney. Back packs and purses are left on baby strollers constantly -- outside unattended --when the family is on a ride such as Its a Small World or Haunted Mansion. :confused::oops:

Yes, we installed regular screws in the upper tracks, leaving them low enough to prevent the doors from being lifted up to remove them. Years ago we had an intruder start into our side courtyard at just about dusk. We were in our lanai and heard the gate open. When my husband confronted him he turned and ran. The police arrived too late to catch him. Ever since that night, probably 15 years ago, we have had a padlock on our gate. Let's see, garage door down and locked, front door locked, blinds closed, gate locked. Unfortunately, this is how we have to live if we want to keep the possessions we have worked for. The crooks are looking for something they can sell easily, or pawn, for a quick drug fix. They do not care who they rob. Two years ago, while on vacation up north, I had a beautiful diamond ring, my wedding band, and a Hawaiian heirloom-style ring stolen from the nightstand while we were out golfing. The thief busted the door in and made off with about $11,000 of my jewelry. Lesson learned: Never leave anything in plain sight. At least make it difficult for them to find your valuables.

A few years ago they caught the ones you are referring to.

Is the o.p. sure the alleged theft of the mini mower happened while he went inside for a drink? That's a short time in which for somebody to zip in there and grab stuff. (I'm saying this only because of the many times we thought something was gone or maybe stolen, and we found it, forgetting we'd put it elsewhere the last time used.)

They'd have to be waiting in a car/van close by. Look for that and take pics with your phone of the vehicle and plate and report it.

///

So, we're not the only cautious ones? Good to know that everyone hasn't lost common sense. :BigApplause:

I don't know a single person here who 'lives like a prisoner in a fortress' here in TV. This is the kind of stereotyping and labeling of TV that is so far out of bounds and gives a totally distorted picture of crime here. Yes, there is crime, but it is statistically very low compared to other cities and suburbs of this size.

But I DO know wise people like ourselves who have a monitored alarm system, and a nice affordable one to start with is Simply Safe.

Too many older Villagers sneer at the idea of having an alarm system, but the whole idea is that when that alarm goes off with sirens blaring, it keeps the intruder OUT of the house and sends him/her running and the police are called within a minute once they talk to you on the monitoring call. Do you really want that intruder in your house and personal space like in your bedroom? Keep them OUT with sirens etc. going off.

The other thing that bugs me is the worry about possessions. We all have insurance on possessions, but we don't have enough insurance for our bodies and minds if we are attacked/assaulted physically and with firearms/knives. Get the alarm system and use it!

I responded to a person who sounds as though there is a checklist each day -- garage door down, doors locked, blinds closed. THAT is prison for me. I sincerely feel badly that someone feels that way. While you were typing your response to me, I was removing my response because I didn't feel like defending myself against posts from people who didn't get the fact I was being compassionate.

I did sense you were being compassionate and I realized you saw that it sounds like they're living in a prison, which I think that type of "living" is, also. The bottom line for me was that others were chiming in in support of that kind of thinking without actual experience of living and owning a home here.

I was responding to the impression of that prison-like existence that is conveyed and supported with more comments to that effect, to newcomers and newbies or those considering coming here. There is a lot of negative, unfounded stereotyping of this beautiful place which is the best place many of us have ever lived in.

I apologize if my post seemed too directed at you because it wasn't intended to be.

Where did the OP go? We would like some answers to our many questions.

No apology needed. We are both speaking from our hearts. I live here. I loVe it here. There have to be the occasional posts about alligators in our swimming pools and other stereotyping or it would be referred to as the Villages of Florida.

I just returned from a tour in Costa Rica. All the homes in the capitol city of San Jose as well as in smaller towns have bars on all the windows and doors and most have high fences around them and razor wire on top of the fencing.

No way I would live like that and needless to say, I would not live in Costa Rica. There are communties of Americans who have retired there. They live in REAL gated communities with high walls around the community as well as the razor wire on top of the walls AND armed security guards.

The Villages may have a bit of petty crime now and then but it sure is the safest and best place to live that I can imagine. I love it here!

I'm so sorry this happened to you. As a victim of garage theft myself (NOT in TV), I know what an awful feeling it is to know that a bad person has been inside part of your home, and that feeling is as bad, or even worse than the actual loss of belongings.

I'm usually very conscientious about keeping my garage door closed, but I've certainly left it open and unattended for short periods while doing yard work.

Did you by chance notice any landscapers or other contractors working in your area? Don't get me wrong, I'm not assuming or accusing, but this seems like such a random crime of opportunity, my first thought was that it was someone already in the area for another purpose. The vast majority of the contractors working in TV are honest people, but some of the crimes in the past have linked back to people who have worked for the homeowner or were in the area doing work for someone else.

My wife doesn't live now like a prisoner in a fortress and I won't either, when I get there. We just take precautions in order to save the life of a person if they should, with criminal intent, enter our dwelling.

Not in prison
 

I do not feel that I live like a prisoner at all. I feel that we take precautions to keep ourselves and our possessions safe. There is a great feeling of security knowing we have done the best we can to keep the bad guys out. Trust me, if you ever have an intruder in your courtyard, or have prized possessions stolen, you will realize that this isn't something that only happens to others. That particular theft did not happen in The Villages but there have been many instances similar to this reported here.
I was stupid to leave my jewelry in plain sight. I was trusting that no one would violate me. I was wrong.

Hmmmm..... OP has not come back ? ;)

Hopefully he found his mini mower.:shrug:

Common sense is one thing.........living in fear is not worth it!

I don't think taking regular precautions is living in a prison. I'm from up north, just outside Washington DC. We have always been security conscious. Now that we have arrived here, each night we lock our doors and have the extra lock on the sliders, our CYV gate is padlocked, our alarm system is turned on and we turn the garage door toggle to off. It becomes a routine.

This allows me to feel safe and I get a good nights sleep. I don't feel like I'm in a prison at all. I feel like I have my safe haven within a wonderful, beautiful community.

I also always close my blinds at night, unless I'm entertaining. I have always felt like a fish in a fishbowl at night if people can see into my home. I see no reason for keeping the blinds open at night since I can't really see out.

I've seen firsthand how someone who laughs at my security system and supposed paranoia, has a break in and feels violated and the first thing they do is buy an alarm system. I also agree with the poster that said the main thing you want is a noise that will makes a thief realize that this house is just not going to be that easy and hopefully they will leave before they can take your valuables.

I love it here. There is crime everywhere. But there is nothing wrong with protecting yourself just in case.

Well said.

Good to know.

I understand your comments and your empathy.

Please reply to those who inquired regarding the village in which you reside. Thank you

OP has 9 post and has not returned or responded. That being the case makes me wonder and also makes me want to discard the post.

I doubt very much that the OP is going to respond to any of this. Just sayin'. I think it was just a "stir the pot post", however, he/she did get people thinking.