Asklemmy

First, the USA is a giant country. It takes about four hours to drive from New York to Philadelphia and two weeks to drive from New York to Los Angeles.

Second, crime can vary wildly in the same city.

It is highly dependent on where you live. And it’s not density-specific, either. Some cities are sketchier than others. Some rural areas are sketchier than others.

That really depends on where. My mother grew up in Montana and they never locked their doors. Whereas my ass in NJ has never not locked the doors.

In my parent's area, where it's like 40 people per square mile, yeah it's perfectly safe. It's a hard mindset to get out of for me, I live in metro Detroit now. My neighborhood is nice, low crime. Good school district. We leave our house unlocked for short periods, like going g to pick up our kid from daycare or taking a walk to the park. Sometimes it gets left unlocked accidentally overnight. Nothing has ever happened.

I also am in the habit of never locking my car. There's nothing in it, except my daughter's carseat and some quarters for the Aldi carts. Only once has anything been taken, and that was in a mall parking lot. They stole two throw pillows, and a warm coat. I can only assume it was a homeless person, so I'm not even mad. At least with unlocked doors I don't worry about my windows being broken.

Living in a top 25 murder per 100k capita area, windows are locked, doors locked, cars locked, bright outdoor lights, backyard fence padlocked, cameras recording and on battery backup lol.

the US is a gigantic country, so there are different practices in different places. I have never left my door unlocked, but maybe others have.

I personally have never lived somewhere where I don't lock the doors, even if I'm home. It just makes me feel safer.

Conversely, my dad, who lives about 15 minutes from me, has never locked the front door of the house in the 45 years I've been alive. When he goes away somewhere, he leaves the garage door unlocked so neighbors can borrow tools and the kids in the neighborhood can grab a ball if they need one. Nothing has ever gone missing.

Wouldn't advise leaving things unlocked overnight in general, but it'll depend where in the US. Here out in the exurbs I have neighbors who haven't locked their houses or cars in years, but I just personally wouldn't fall asleep without locking my doors. Maybe it's the true crime podcasts getting to me.

Like others have said, it depends on where you are in the US. I live in a suburban area and we always lock our doors, whereas my cousins live in a rural region of the state and rarely lock their doors.

It's up to you, but I'd always err on the side of caution and lock the door.

I live in Suburban North Carolina, I haven't locked my house in years.

When I lived in LA and Atlanta, motherfuckers would steal the milk out of your coffee. I kept everything completely locked up, put away and hidden. I now live in northern Wisconsin and I dont lock anything. I dont think anyone around here does. This is the safest community I've ever been a part of and I love it.

Totally depends on where.

I know that in certain countries like Japan or South Korea: it's normal to leave the front door unlocked

Can't speak to the Koreans. I don't know anybody in Japan who doesn't lock their door even when they're home. Granted, I don't know the entire population. Even in the countryside I suspect more people will lock when they're not at home. There is a tradition where the area immediately behind the front door where you take your shoes off is considered not that private. They call it genkan. And delivery people may - in rural areas - enter that area without being invited. The fear of one day finding the public broadcaster TV fee collector, the yoghurt mafia, Jehovah's witnesses, or the Mount Fuji cult recruiters in your genkan, makes most people lock.

It’s safer to lock, how much safer varies. Why do you ask?

As I move into bigger and bigger cities the people around me insist the answer is no, but I regularly leave the doors unlocked. I also have no issue hitchhiking either so, maybe i'm a bit of an outlier. I've got infinite levels of trust in people.

Where I live front door locked, back door unlocked.

cctv is not as much of a thing in the us. Largely dependent on bussinesses and not much so far with public cameras. Few places are going to have rates that low but they exist and ones with higher rates still have people that by and large keep the door unlocked. Its mostly a perceived thing really though. Im not sure I would call it safe just because its uncommon. I always thought it was foolish to not utilze something like it but I do tend to use the bolt as its easier to not lock myself out because I have to use a key to lock the door.

It isn’t safe to leave your doors unlocked anywhere in the world. It’s not just a crime thing you wanna block the entrances to your house to keep animals out, To stop it from drifting open during weather event that can damage your house, To seal the house to keep vermin and pestilence out.

Being safe is such a broad term.

Growing up on a small town in Iowa, I would leave my car unlocked and windows down during the day. I lived rural and we never locked our door. Now there's been more development near my mother's house and she locks the door at night and when she's not home. Someone down the street about a mile away had someone break into their house. Unfortunately for the perp, the home owner heard, grabbed a golf club and gave the dude a shiner and a titlists face tattoo.

Now I live in a larger metro area and keep my doors locked all day. I truly wouldn't need to because we have a pretty safe community, but my wife grew up in a worse place so it's more habit than anything. We also have dogs they could potentially pop a door open and get out, so extra piece of mind.

I never lock my doors when I am home, that said, I do have home defense on lock. California.

Lock the doors if I remember to when I leave.

Never been robbed or even pick pocketed.

Couldn't tell you. It's just a habit for me to lock my shit up when I leave/not using it (car, house, etc.).

I don't know how people are fine with leaving their house/car unlocked just because. I also don't trust people because I've had way, way too many experiences with complete and total dumbass idiots who don't know what they're doing with themselves to be able to leave anything to chance.

No.