housing
Housing Safety Overview
Clear steps for assessing housing risks, improving home safety, and preparing for changes.
housinghome safety
HOUSING
Housing Safety Overview
Safety risks inside the home
Some people review their housing layout to identify safety risks and possible safety supports.
- List all rooms and common areas in your home.
- Note doors, windows, and how each room connects to others.
- Identify any rooms that can be locked from the outside or where someone could be trapped.
- Identify rooms with:
- Heavy objects
- Sharp tools
- Breakable items
- Limited exits
- Notice where phones, chargers, and power outlets are located.
- Check where smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, and fire extinguishers are placed, if present.
- Consider which rooms feel:
- Most visible to neighbors or passersby
- Most isolated (such as basements, garages, or sheds)
- Hardest to leave quickly
- Decide which rooms you prefer to use when possible for:
- Phone calls
- Online activity
- Private conversations
This overview is not a replacement for legal advice, security services, or emergency response. It is a planning tool you may adapt to your situation.
Entrances and exits
Entrances and exits can be important in housing safety planning.
- Make a simple sketch or list of:
- Main entry doors
- Secondary doors (balconies, patios, back doors)
- Windows that open
- Shared exits (hallways, stairwells, fire escapes)
- Note which doors and windows:
- Lock from the inside only
- Lock from both sides
- Are broken or hard to open
- Check lighting around:
- Front and back doors
- Parking areas
- Mailboxes and shared entry spaces
- Identify potential “bottlenecks,” such as:
- Narrow hallways
- Single staircases
- Doors that tend to be blocked or cluttered
- Notice where keys are kept and who has copies.
- If your building has shared security (intercom, buzzer, lobby doors), note:
- Who can let people in
- Whether cameras exist and who can view them
- Any patterns in how people gain access to the building
Neighbors as safety points
Some people consider how neighbors or nearby locations might function as safety points.
- List close physical locations:
- Immediate neighbors (sides, above, below)
- Nearby units on the same floor
- Businesses or public spaces within quick walking distance
- Consider which neighbors:
- Are usually home
- Can generally hear noise from your unit
- Have previously interacted with you in a neutral or positive way
- Decide whether you want any neighbor to:
- Hold a spare key
- Agree on a signal (for example, a specific text or phrase) that means you want them to check in or call for help
- Be a temporary waiting point while you arrange other options
- Note local options that may be open for part of the day, such as:
- Libraries
- Coffee shops
- Community centers
- Faith or cultural centers
- Think about privacy:
- What you want to share or not share with neighbors
- How much identifying information you provide
- Any concerns about information being passed back to the person harming you
Additional tools and contacts, including some housing-related supports, are listed through resources at DV.Support.
When routines must change
Changes in routines can sometimes affect safety around housing.
- List your usual arrival and departure times for:
- Home
- Work or school
- Childcare or caregiving
- Regular appointments
- Note who usually knows your routines, such as:
- People you live with
- Neighbors
- Co-workers or classmates
- Rideshare drivers or others who pick you up regularly
- Identify any points where you are regularly:
- Alone in parking areas or garages
- Waiting outside buildings
- Using predictable routes or stops
- Consider possible adjustments, such as:
- Changing the order of errands or commute routes
- Varying times of arrival or departure when possible
- Arranging to arrive or leave with another person
- Using different entry points to your building when that feels safer
- Review digital routines connected to your home:
- Location sharing on phones or apps
- Smart locks, cameras, or doorbells
- Shared calendars that show when you are home
- Decide what you want written down, and what you prefer to keep in your head or in secure digital storage.
For some people, combining housing planning with a broader personal safety plan is useful. You can adapt these checklists to match your own priorities and resources.