well, having lived in an apt. in NYC, and had it broken into, I'll say this: it's not as bad as you think. For one thing, it depends on how much you have, and whether it's worth stealing. My roommate and I had small amounts of cash around (they took her $10 roll of quarters), plus some electronics. They didn't want to stop long enough to unplug everything. Cops in my highly Hispanic neighborhood said the thieves were looking for cash (since many of my neighbors keep a sizable amount at home instead of in the bank) or gold. Sometimes they do try to take VCRs, CD players, electronics they could stick in a shopping bag or duffel and carry off inconspicuously. of course, in your quiet building, maybe they will TAKE the time to unplug the electronics, but.. I think you'd be better off dealing w/ the securing of your STUFF in the apartment, than in investing $$$ in perimeter reinforcement for an apartment you don't own. What do you have that's really worth $$ to a thief? And then, how can you secure it? Electronics: There used to be pads and tethers you could attach to stuff like TVs and stereos, so that if they were removed by a thief, they'd never work again (and they came w/ stickers that it was hoped would deter the thief from testing it out). (also note that many electronics stuff is really not that expensive, comparatively, so there ain't much of a market--and the days of crackheads who'd be happy w/ $10 for their next hit have sort of faded in most places) Will you keep much in the apt. in the way of cash, gold watch, stocks and bonds, etc? Get one of those Sentry fire safes, and screw it to the floor of the closet, then pile the clothes on top of it, and take the key with you--don't leave it around in the house where it's findable. (when you screw those things in place, you can't unscrew them until you unlock it; or you'd need one HELL of a pry bar!) I'd do that before I'd pay for a safety-deposit box, frankly. Bcs then you could get to that cash, papers, etc., should you need them. And most thieves don't care about stocks & bonds. Seriously, what papers do you have that a thief would care about? If you're worried he'll get your credit card number from your billing paperwork, get a two-drawer fling cabinet that locks, and get in the habit of locking it (and carrying the key in your wallet). Bearer bonds--but nobody should keep those at home anyway. Savings bonds--too much work for most thieves, and he'd need an ID to cash 'em anyway. So if someone did break in, what would/could they take? For me, it was nearly nothing. The worst part was the damage to the door jamb. Remember that, even though YOU are away at night, your neighbors are not. In fact, they're inside that same house with you, and if someone tries to kick your door down while you're away, they'll hear it!! It's probably a window thief or a lock picker that you need to worry about. For that, try these ideas: *fire escape gate on the window ($500 when I bought mine; you do need the landlord's approval bcs it srews into the window-frame studs) *Medeco-brand lock cylinder--unpickable enough for most purposes And just in case someone DOES try to kick in the door, you only need a reinforced lock inside the apartment itself. In my city, we called them "police locks"--the style popular when I rented an apt. was essentially a bar that goes into a metal "cup" fitting set into the floor (you'll need landlord permission to gouge out a hole to sink the cup into the floor). Then the key slides the 45-degree-angle bar from one side to the other, and on one side, it can slide up, and the other it cant (locked)/. I tried to find a picture but couldnÂt. ThereÂs another style of police lock in which bars go from side to side; this might be more acceptable for your landlord. Because instead of digging into the floor, youÂll drill deep into the doorway studs (through the decorative molding) to install the brackets on the side. Doorway molding is easier to replace, and in fact he may require you to leave the lock in place when you move, which might be an advantage to him (except, of course, that the mere presence of the lock will make a future tenant think the place is unsafe). http://store.yahoo.com/853111/foxstylpollo.html I donÂt think you should spend so much $$ buying such permanent stuff for a place you donÂt own. Granted, w/ that low a rent, you may stay there for a long time, long enough to justify spending it. But your landlord may not allow you to mess w/ stuff. If he does, it will be almost guaranteed that he will require you to leave it when you move out. I wonder if youÂd be better off finding a way to assuage your fear; especially if itÂs really nagging at you. After all, you called it "an all-consuming obsessive worry." That sounds like something rooted in fear, and not necessarily in evidence. So, gather some evidence. Not that you should be stupid and never lock your doors, or live w/ crummy locks and a flimsy door. But there are lots of other people that burglars are more likely to hit (figuring that the other victims will have more valuable stuff than a guy who can only afford to rent an apartment in an old house). And, nowadays, burglars are MUCH more likely to work during the day, when most people are at work. You say this is a low-crime areaÂnice, w/ lots of people paying sort of high rents, chi-chi stores, etc. If thatÂs true, then you donÂt live among lots of people who are wandering around at 3am doing drugs and getting into trouble; not w/ that rent level (of course, there are bozos in every financial level). Anybody specifically targeting the neighborhood wonÂt bother w/ youÂtheyÂll aim for folks w/ more. Maybe you should take some daytime hours (lucky youÂIÂd have to take a day off) and go to the police precinct house, and ask to speak to the Public Affairs officer. Ask him to show you the crime statistics, and focus specifically on what happens in your neighborhood after 5pm. What sorts of crimes are being reported? I bet youÂll find itÂs almost no middle-of-the-night break-ins. And when break-ins are reported, what is stolen? What do thieves in your neighborhood look for? How much damage might they do if they *do* get in. How many other homes or apartments in your area have security systems? If most of them don't have them, it's probably because they're not really necessary. (auto alarms: As someone who lives in an apartment bldg in a densely populated area, may I plead: do NOT get a car alarm! Get an ignition cut-off instead--the car-insurance benefits will be the same. But I'm telling you, the ONLY thing car alarms do is annoy the heck out of the neighbors. Nobody looks to see whose car is being broken into--they all assume it's a malfunction. And nobody wants to argue with or fight a car thief anyway, so they're not going to interrupt them) (also, as for the home alarm, you do NOT want to have one of those go off and make all sorts of alarms and flashing lights.)

Lovely home. Please don't paint the brick. The brick is attractive and goes well with the roof color. I would begin with painting the garage door the color of the siding and trim. If you are planning to repaint the siding, consider a shade a bit darker, and paint the shutters the color of the roof. I would remove the semicircular trim on the porch posts, replace the turned posts with 6-inch (or larger) square posts, and either remove the porch railing and spindles or replace them with square rails and spindles. Then I would add landscaping.

The reason I ask for pictures taken a certain way is to be able to give the best feedback I'm able to give. It's not possible with pictures taken randomly, and from various angles. Today, pictures are basically free ... not like the old days when we had to wait a week for them to be developed and printed and they costed equivalent to 4 or 5 gallons of milk. Based on the orange flags, the proposed walk looks like like some percentage of improvement, but not as good as it could be. As a bed edge at the right side of the house, it doesn't really look like much of an improvement at all.

Think natural elements, stained wood, stone, leather, metals, fake or natural furs. . Furniture is substantial and comfortable. Come, grab a drink, flop down and relax. No shabby chic furniture. That says country farmhouse. The only furniture I see that is mountain currently in your home is the leather recliner. Fabric is tweedy or courser fabric. I little plaid goes a long way. You don't want to look like your in the Scottish highlands. And you don't need animals in your decor if you don't want For color think of the seasons. The whites, grays, and brown/blacks of winter. The greens of spring and summer, or the burnt oranges, golden yellows, burgundys, dark greens of fall. For walls, pictures of nature or natural elements. Sometimes there is a fine line between rustic and country. So before you buy ask yourself if it is rustic or country. If it has stars, decals or hearts on it, walk on by.