Roommate living - keeping stuff safe

[forthewinwin]

For those who live with roommates, how do you keep your valuables (e.g. Camera, laptop) secure ?

My current roommates I know well so I can trust them, but I've had my stuff stolen from sketchy characters before in residence.

I was thinking of a safe, but couldn't someone just take the whole thing away?

[ronin1701]

I was thinking of a safe, but couldn't someone just take the whole thing away?

They could, but it's a lot harder for them to claim that "you misplaced" an entire safe, as opposed to a laptop or camera. Plus safes are a bit heavier and more of a pain in the @$$ for them to steal.

At the end of the day, nothing is going to stop a determined thief. So all you need to do is to discourage the opportunistic ones.

[inmyturret]

If your landlord allows it, but put a lock on your bedroom door.

Keep your door closed at all times so that your stuff isn't visible. Lock your laptop to your desk. Keep your valuables that you don't need very often (e.g. jewellery) at your parents' house.

Don't leave expensive stuff over breaks and holidays (summer, christmas). My friend's entire house was emptied over Christmas. Even the beds and couches were taken. Also make sure your landlord has your phone number if a break-in occurs while you are away. Insurance companies usually require someone to physically check the apartment every 48 hours.

My biggest problem was my housemate's friends helping themselves to my food in the fridge. Once an entire $10 block of cheese disappeared. Turns out my housemate's friend ate it all in one sitting.

[forthewinwin]

^^ When I first came to UBC my mother cooked me food for the week to put in my fridge.

Overtime the others started eating little by little and drinkin my juice, and eventually they started to clear out half or my whole fridge at once. This was over a 6 month period. My mother packs them in individual boxes and we count them so we knew something was something sketchy from the start. Overtime the value was easily $100-200 (much of it was meat- which tends to be expensive in the area). Ever since I just stopped packing much food and eat as little as possible

I'm also a photographer so I have this equipment that I like to have around (people pay me to take pictures sometimes), but I don't know if I'd be comfortable even having that stuff in a safe.

[Madchester]

My biggest problem was my housemate's friends helping themselves to my food in the fridge. Once an entire $10 block of cheese disappeared. Turns out my housemate's friend ate it all in one sitting.

Get a bar fridge for your own room. Kept my personal condiments, daily leftover, beer, etc. there back in school.

[forthewinwin]

Get a bar fridge for your own room. Kept my personal condiments, daily leftover, beer, etc. there back in school.

I did that eventually.. Got one of those mini fridges in my own residence room that locked. Im pretty sure if you rent your own place outside residence you can't lock your own room up without the landlord's permission though

[Kunman]

lock your res doors

get to know your roomates before bringing your stuff in. If they are sketchy than leave your valueables at home.

buy a laptop lock if sketchy roomates

[ronin1701]

^^ When I first came to UBC my mother cooked me food for the week to put in my fridge.

Overtime the others started eating little by little and drinkin my juice, and eventually they started to clear out half or my whole fridge at once. This was over a 6 month period. My mother packs them in individual boxes and we count them so we knew something was something sketchy from the start. Overtime the value was easily $100-200 (much of it was meat- which tends to be expensive in the area). Ever since I just stopped packing much food and eat as little as possible

I'm also a photographer so I have this equipment that I like to have around (people pay me to take pictures sometimes), but I don't know if I'd be comfortable even having that stuff in a safe.

Chili peppers. Scotch bonnets are nice and fiery.

[samm]

I did that eventually.. Got one of those mini fridges in my own residence room that locked. Im pretty sure if you rent your own place outside residence you can't lock your own room up without the landlord's permission though

Just rent a place that already has locks. Why live at a place where you feel insecure about your belongings.