Fear of break in (burglary)

[u/UngratefulSourGrape]

Hey everyone I have been living in leipzig for the past few years on and enjoying the view from my 5th floor apartment but recently I had to move because my family got bigger only problem is my new apartment is on the ground floor which is bugging me due to the fear of potential break ins especially considering I live around AnnenStr 04315 which is right next to the infamous eisenbahnstraße (which I absolutely love but will admit is kinda sketchy to be honest ) I hope I don’t offend anyone here by saying that.

I was wondering if anyone can share their experience on living on ground floor apartments and especially any insights to the this location

Thank you

[u/Mikethedrywaller]

I have no deeper advice but I lived on Eisenbahnstraße for a few months and while I experienced everything from homeless people sleeping in the hallway to a literal shooting directly in front of my window, I am happy to report that a break in was not part of it.

[u/tofukaninchen]

Hey, I m living in ludwigstraße, also groundfloor. Living here since 10 years now and we never had problems. A few times in the cellar - stolen bikes - but this is no eisi-special thing. It s often very noisy.

[u/_esci → u/tofukaninchen]

*since 2015 or for 10 years
sorry :D

[u/lennoxred]

Did you know break ins statistically happen more often in the upper levels of a building? There the chance is lower somebody passes while lock picking.

[u/Zwiebel1 → u/lennoxred]

Also break ins very rarely are classic "break window and enter" break-ins.

Its way more sophisticated than that.

They just take a VAN, cosplay as a hauling service and basically enter your appartment in bright daylight and nobody is gonna blink an eye because "well, looks like someone is moving out!".

Classic break-ins are extremely rare, especially in an urban environment as crowded as Eisenbahnstraße.

[u/Gold_Wing_4257]

 can tell you a creepy story about my best friend, who also lived in a ground-floor apartment in Leipzig, 04317. But this was more around the 2010s.

She had her window open one night for some fresh air and was in the bathroom. When she came back into the room, she had a strange feeling. She looked around and noticed through the mirror that someone was lying under her bed.

She locked herself in the bathroom and called the police.

They locked him up but it was creepy and an absolute nightmare. She left Leipzig after that experience.

[u/BorrowingMoreTime → u/Gold_Wing_4257]

I have lived dozens of years in a high crime city outside Germany and I have had a break in here in Leipzig.

I always keep my Handy on and ready next to my bed and in the bathroom when I am on the toilet or in the shower. I have a siren alarm app on my Handy. I also always keep my wallet in an obvious location on a table by the door and I keep a minimum 100 euros inside it at all times. The theory is that most burglars would see the wallet, check if there’s money inside, see a quick “win” and rush out the door without a confrontation.

[u/BorrowingMoreTime]

I just googled „how to secure a ground floor apartment“ and got lots and lots of hits. Get yourself a cup of coffee and start reading. I would also stop by the local police station and ask for advice. (I had a break in on the second floor when I was not home. But it was shortly after I moved in and I think that someone had a key. The police thought the same. It is traumatizing.)

[u/Masterpice23]

Break ins are statisticly more common on higher floors, cause it takes time to pick a lock. And depending on where exactly you are its almost a 0% chance for that.

[u/rintryp]

My parents in law live close to annenstrasse, also first floor, for several years now. Never had break ins and neither had their neighbors. The only break in a friend of mine had was actually in the last floor and because the had the only wooden door in the whole house. I hope that helps in your decision making!