People in glass houses shouldn't need gated windows
People in glass houses shouldn't need gated windows
From squatters to break-ins, anything can happen when you don't check on a home
When I opened my email and saw an alert from my mother, I sighed. I already knew exactly what I was going to read, and it was almost two pages long. Although I’m not a mother, this crew has an imagination unlike any other — and it usually involves them picturing how to save you from the absolute worst scenarios that you’ve never even considered. This time around, it was bars on my window.
When I first did a walk-through of the condo I later purchased, I noticed that there was a set of bars on the back door window. It made sense. The screen door lock was noticeably old, and half the door was made of glass. A quick jiggle of the screen door and a brick would easily be an entryway for squatters and criminals.
Recommended Read: “Nationwide battle between squatters and property owners ~ Virginia home sold for $805K with squatters living in the basement”
And the owners had moved to another state, so it wasn’t like they were going to poke their heads into the neighborhood every now and then. They made sure the windows had quality locks, put bars on that door window and were on a plane ticket out of the city. I understand why they did what they did. There are a zillion movies (and news reports) about thieves breaking into glass doors or doors with glass windows. Even Realtors run into this problem if they are trying to sell an empty rental or home.
But before I signed the closing docs to buy my condo unit, I’d already gone to Home Depot and requested a collection of custom blind samples. For the same reason I’m so into coats and jackets, I love a good-looking curtain or set of blinds. It’s the first thing people see on you, especially during cooler months. And the shabby and dirty-looking pink blinds that seemed popular in the building were grossing me out. They looked like Pepto Bismol gave them away as a bonus prize.
Before I scheduled a U-Haul or talked to movers, I spent an absurd amount of hours (and weeks) asking friends, family and co-workers to vote on my custom blind choice. I won’t even admit the number of hours I spent in department stores dissecting curtains. Most importantly, I wanted to get rid of that jail gate on my door.
That was where my mother put her foot down. In her mind, getting rid of that window gate was a gateway to being burglarized, and unfortunately, I was no stranger to this occurrence.
Recommended Read: “What really pissed me off about getting burglarized … is not what you think it is”
Her feelings were valid. Someone could grab a brick or any other heavy item to break the window, reach their arm inside and walk right on in. But my mother wasn’t the one who had to look at those tacky gates while cooking and hanging out with guests; I was. So I had to figure out a happy medium that would make her worry less and be something I could stand to look at.