As my house was broken into on July 4th, I offer up these tips:

1) While many recent burglaries seem to happen in the day, still
consider installing some scare-off devices: motion lights; simple or
complex alarms, etc. (Huge, mean dog, optional).

2) Let your neighbor's know if you are having work done and for how
long (you do have your neighbor's e-mail addresses and digits, right?)
If you see someone on a ladder without a truck outside - well, that's
an alarm bell. Yes, this won't work if the workers are doing the
thieving while on the job, but hopefully that is rare.

3) Do a complete walk around your property and see where you might
need to install window locks or where you have have vulnerabilities
(easy places for the bad guy and gals to hide). Oh, and lock up those
ladders lying around the back or in an accessible garage.

4) Install timers inside (lights and radios) - no brainer!

4) Drive through or walk your dogs through the alleys every so often -
this is the major point of entry: some traffic is likely a good thing.

This is our 'hood - let's watch for each other and each other's
properties.