All homeowners worry about being robbed but can’t think of any good places to hide their valuables. Hiding things under the bed or inside the closet is too easy, and thieves will find them immediately. You need to be more creative than that. Here are 18 smart places to hide your valuables from burglars.
Inside Food Cabinets
Burglars won’t expect to find valuable items inside food cabinets, so it’s unlikely they’ll root through your kitchen looking for money or jewelry. Burying valuables beneath packets or cans of food will also create more work for thieves and they probably won’t bother looking there at all.
In the Attic
The attic sounds like an obvious place to hide things, but it’s actually a very smart place to stash valuables. Burglars are unlikely to ever enter your attic in case you return home suddenly and they get trapped up there. They’ll also assume your attic is full of old things, not anything of value.
In a Child’s Toy Box
Children’s bedrooms are usually messy, so they’re a smart place to hide adult valuables. The Guardian advises hiding them in a toy box specifically because there’s an unwritten rule that thieves don’t enter children’s rooms. If they do, they’ll look for something obvious, like a TV, and not root through a toy box.
At the Back of Drawers
When hiding valuable items in drawers, never put them on top of clothes or at the front because they’ll be discovered immediately. Burglars may dig through your drawers, but they’re less likely to find valuables buried right at the back. If they open a drawer and see nothing expensive, they’ll likely move on.
Behind Posters
Posters are thin, but they’re a genius place to hide certain valuables because no thief would take enough notice of them to pull them off the wall. If you have a wall safe, you can place a poster over it or tape envelopes of cash or important documents onto the wall behind a poster.
Under or In Couch Cushions
When burglars enter your lounge, they typically make a beeline for expensive items like the television, gaming console, or fancy ornaments. They want to get in and out quickly, so they won’t try to handle large items like couches. That’s why it’s clever to put valuables under or inside couch cushions for safekeeping.
Inside the Toilet Tank
It sounds disgusting to put anything inside a toilet, but this logic is precisely what makes thieves less likely to search the toilet for valuables. Placing items inside a completely sealed ziplock bag will stop them from getting wet and damaged, and putting them in the toilet tank will hide them from view.
Inside a False Bottom
A false bottom is a secret compartment hidden beneath what looks like the bottom of a drawer. That way, if a thief does empty your drawers, they won’t discover your stashed valuables. Instructables teaches that you can easily make a false bottom yourself with a piece of plywood to conceal things beneath.
Between Cabinets
Sometimes, the perfect hiding spot is right in front of your face. Kitchen cabinets typically have slim gaps between them that are the ideal size to slip envelopes of cash or other slender items. Thieves won’t search every nook and cranny of your home on the off-chance you’ve stashed valuables, so they should be safe.
Underneath the Floorboards
Hiding things underneath the floorboards is a common mystery trope in movies, but you can do it in real life, too! If you can ease up a loose floorboard, you’ll find a small cubby hole underneath where you can place valuable items. Put a rug over the floorboard if you want to hide it further.
Inside False Outlets
Have you ever looked at a wall outlet and thought it looked fake? If the answer is no, consider purchasing a false outlet to stash valuables inside. They fit into the wall like real outlets, but you can’t plug anything into them. They function as discrete miniature wall safes.
In the Basement
Like the attic, most burglars won’t go into your basement because they won’t be able to make a quick escape. That makes the basement a smart place to hide valuables, especially if you put them inside dusty boxes that don’t look important. Searching an entire basement will seem like too much work.
Inside Hollowed-Out Books
Fake bookshelves are used to conceal secret rooms in movies, but you can use the books themselves in real life! The New York Times reports that hollowed-out books and empty book-shaped boxes are sometimes used in interior design, but they also make fantastic hiding places. You can put them on shelves and still conceal them.
Inside Wall Vents
Most houses have wall vents, but they’re inconspicuous enough that a burglar won’t pay attention to them. As a result, they’re an excellent hiding place for small valuables. You can’t see inside them unless you press your face up close, so the things stashed inside them shouldn’t catch the eye.
In the Pockets of Clothes
It might sound like an obvious place to leave cash or other small valuables, but sometimes, hiding things in plain sight works. Thieves will search through outdoor jacket pockets and handbags, but they won’t go through every shirt or pair of jeans in your closet because this wastes time.
Under Your Pots and Pans
Burglars will definitely check your kitchen for valuables, but they won’t waste time going through every single cabinet or drawer if there’s nothing obviously expensive. That’s why concealing things under pots and pans is a good idea. Burglars will also try to avoid making noise, so they won’t dig through these items.
Under the Fridge
If you’ve ever lost anything under a fridge, you’ll know nobody wants to explore those dark, dusty depths, not even a burglar. It’s also not somewhere most people would think to hide things, so they likely won’t crouch down to check underneath. After finding nothing valuable inside the fridge, thieves usually move on.
Inside Stuffed Animals
Nobody wants to hurt their favorite stuffed animals, but if you want to stash valuable items inconspicuously, it has to be done. Instructables recommends decapitating the stuffed animal, removing some stuffing, then sliding a small container filled with cash or jewelry inside and reattaching the head. It’s brutal but genius!
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