New York is safer than ever, but it's still insane not to lock your doors

By Virginia K. Smith | January 9, 2015 - 11:59AM

Yes, even in #deBlasiosNewYork—and even if you have a doorman—you really do need to keep the door to your apartment locked. Seems obvious, right? Like advice we shouldn't even bother rehashing? Apparently not: more than half of Williamsburg's residential burglaries last year were the result of open doors and windows, the precinct's commanding officer told DNAinfo. "It's almost like a dorm atmosphere, where most of the doors are open," he said.

This could go a long way towards explaining the 24 percent spike in burglaries in the Williamsburg and Greenpoint area from 2013 to 2014. As we've written previously, door-locking is a non-negotiable safety measure, and if you live in a ground floor apartment—or if there's a fire escape adjacent to your window—you'd be wise to keep your windows shut, and invest in an FDNY-approved fire escape gate.

The buzzer is also a key battleground. If your building's got a working intercom and buzzer system, don't use it to buzz in strangers who ring your apartment, and if it doesn't, we've got tips on pressuring the landlord into installing a safer setup. If all that fails? It always helps to have a solid renter's insurance policy in place—and maybe also a large dog.

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