A burglar casing a residential street is not analysing every property in depth. They are running a rapid mental checklist that filters properties into two categories: worth looking at further, or move on. Here is what that checklist actually covers.

Cameras: Visible or Not?

The presence or absence of visible cameras is one of the first things an experienced criminal registers. A video doorbell with a visible lens and indicator light. An exterior camera mounted at a corner. These are meaningful deterrents for opportunistic criminals because they represent documentation risk.

The critical word is visible. A camera that is not obvious is not deterring anyone. Hidden cameras have their place in documentation, but visible placement is what changes the risk calculation at the target selection stage.

Alarm Signage

A yard sign or window decal from a recognisable monitoring company signals that an alarm system is present and that a response chain will begin when it triggers. For criminals operating quickly, this increases the risk profile of the property.

The signage from a real, active monitoring service carries more weight than a generic sign. Experienced criminals know the difference between a sign that comes with an active contract and one that was left behind by a previous owner or purchased independently.

Exterior Lighting

Dark areas around entry points are assets for anyone attempting a forced entry. Motion-activated lights that flood a side gate or rear window when someone approaches eliminate one of the primary tools that residential burglars rely on: concealment during the approach and entry.

A property with good lighting coverage at all entry points removes the low-risk working environment that makes the property appealing. A property with dark side entrances and unlit rear windows is advertising the opposite.

The Glass

Standard residential glass is visible from the street as what it is: glass that breaks in a single strike. Most experienced criminals know that ground-floor windows and sliding glass doors in standard residential builds offer no meaningful physical resistance to entry. They do not need to assess this in detail. It is the assumed baseline for any home with standard windows.

What they are actually looking for is any signal that the glass might not be standard. Something that looks different about the window. A frame that suggests reinforcement. These are rare in the GTA residential market, which is partly why standard glass remains such a common entry point.

STRIKEGLASS from 416 Security Solutions addresses this directly. It installs over existing glass and is completely optically clear, which means it does not function as a visual deterrent the way a camera does. Its value is not in changing what a criminal sees from the street. It is in what they discover when they attempt entry. More on how STRIKEGLASS works is available here. 

Occupancy Signals

Is anyone home? This is a central question in target selection. Signs of an occupied home, a car in the driveway, lights on at varied levels, sounds from inside, a recently mowed lawn, tell a different story than the signals of vacancy.

A home where no car has been in the driveway for three days, mail is accumulating, the lawn is visibly growing, and the same lights have been on or off for an extended period reads as unoccupied to anyone paying attention over time.

Concealment at Entry Points

Large shrubs beside a side gate. A hedge that screens a ground-floor window from the street. An overgrown corner near a back door. These are features that, from a criminal’s perspective, reduce the risk of being observed during an entry attempt. A property with good visibility from the street and from neighbouring homes is a less comfortable working environment than one with natural screening.

The Neighbourhood Dynamic

Beyond the individual property, a criminal casing a street is also reading the neighbourhood. Are people around? Is there foot traffic? Are neighbours visible in their yards or at their windows? A street where residents are present and attentive is a higher-risk working environment than one where everyone is consistently indoors or absent.