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If you are considering getting a home security system installed, you are likely wondering how many security cameras are necessary to keep a watchful eye on your property. The answer to this question hinges on a variety of factors; the size of the property being the most important consideration. Let’s take a look at the other important factors to help you gauge the number of security cameras your home needs.

Finding the Right Balance

A home with too few security cameras will leave your property vulnerable. If you can’t identify a thief before, during, and after the attempted burglary with video footage taken from your security cameras, it will be awfully difficult to obtain justice. Alternatively, an IP camera system with an abundance of cameras will prove costly to purchase, install, and maintain across posterity. A happy medium must be attained. This happy medium differs by property size as well as property design.

Entryways Must be Monitored

Security cameras must be positioned above entryway doors. Every means of entry and exit to the home should be monitored to identify potential threats. The camera must be positioned in a manner that clearly captures the faces of those attempting to enter/exit. The typical home has at least two or three entryways.

Cameras for Choke Points

The average burglar knows homeowners tend to put security cameras by entryways. As a result, many of these thieves will cover their face with their hands or a hood when attempting to access the home. Position security cameras in your home’s choke points such as the hallways and foyer. There is a good chance the burglar will let his guard down once inside the home, assuming the cameras are limited to the entryways. He might not shield his face throughout the entirety of the attempted burglary so choke point cameras might help identify the culprit.

Security Cameras Should be Positioned by High-Interest Assets

If you have especially valuable or confidential items stored in your home, they should be monitored by security cameras. However, if there are cameras above the entryways or hallways leading to the sections of the home where valuable items are stored, it might not be necessary to add more cameras. Give it some thought before deciding whether adding such cameras is redundant or prudent.

Outdoor Cameras

It makes sense to invest in a security monitoring system that captures footage of your property’s exterior throughout the day and night. These cameras are designed with wide-angle lenses that capture as much of your yard, driveway, walkways, porch, and other outdoor areas as possible. Though wide-angle lenses do not provide as clear of an image as the traditional narrow camera angle, their expansive view will capture as much outdoor activity as possible. Outdoor cameras often pay off by recording burglars as they scope out the property ahead of time. These cameras will record thieves as they break into the home and exit. Such footage will prove critically important in thwarting the burglary or proving the guilt of burglar(s) if the robbery is successful.