Are Sequim Crime Rates Really Low?
Yes, Sequim crime rates are really low, but this is a subject that needs an honest evaluation and explanation, because if you look at the information that is available on nearly all of the online websites that purport to compare crime statistics in communities similar in size to Sequim, you’ll get a lot of wrong information and what may actually be fake information. Most of these sites are AI and bot generated for the purpose of boosting SEO on multiple sites in order to get large traffic numbers. These sites and their sister sites will include advertising, which is where they make their money with hundreds of websites doing the same.
A few years back I considered writing a pamphlet or small book about Sequim Crime Rates so I could paint a realistic picture of the history of crime rates and the current crime data. I wanted to do this so retirees who are doing their research on Sequim and Port Angeles could have an honest assessment on crime and safety. If your coming from LA or Portland or NY or Chicago or even Seattle, crime and safety are not small matters any more.
As I was trying to gather data for my Sequim Crime Rates pamphlet, I went to the Sequim Police Department to learn more about available data that would be reliable. I explained that the data on all these Internet sites appeared to be fake data, because it showed Sequim as having crime rates very similar to other communities of the same size all around the country, but I knew that was wrong, because after living here for a couple of decades and raising my own family here, I never had anything stolen, nor did I know anyone who ever had anything stolen. I don’t know anyone who ever had their house broken into, and I know hundreds and hundreds of people after 29 years here. I also listen to the crime reports from the police departments and the country sheriff’s department, and the reports are very minimal.
I have had many conversations with my buyer clients over the past three decades about crime and home security systems, and since most of my buyers are from high crime areas in California and elsewhere, many of them are very concerned about having a security system that is monitored 24/7 by a reputable company and which is also linked to alert the nearest police department who can then respond. Some of them cannot comprehend the kind of low crime rate we have, so they get anxious over trying to get a comprehensive security system installed and monitored before or shortly after they close on their purchase.
I thought I would share a recent texting conversation I had with some clients, because this is very much like the conversations I have with many retirees, and this conversation may help to answer some of your questions or at least help to reduce your anxieties about Sequim crime rates and Port Angeles crime rates.
This texting conversation remains absolutely private, and no information is shared that would reveal either my client’s name or the address of their home. Some details have been edited to disguise it even further.
My Text Responses on Sequim Crime Rates
Security companies are not big here in the Sequim and Port Angeles areas. I live 5 miles outside of downtown Sequim, and I’ve lived in the Sequim area for 29 years, and not only have I never had anyone break in or steal anything, I’ve never had anyone trespass. But I know hundreds of people, and no one I know has ever had a crime committed against them personally or on their property. Port Angeles has a little more crime, but they are 5 times larger than Sequim. This is not an argument for not having security. I have a video security system myself. It includes video surveillance cameras all the way out to the end of my driveway 400 feet from the house. My cameras have sensors and record movement, and an alert with a link to the recording is immediately sent to my iPhone wherever I am. I can watch live too. I can see if it is a delivery man or someone else. I pay no subscription fee for this. It was a one time cost for the cameras and hardware, and the software is free. I’ve been using this system for years, and I am surprised these cameras and the software are trouble free. I have seen ADT signs in front of some homes here, so ADT may be your best bet for having a company monitoring your system 24/7 with a police department dispatch.
If you’d like, I can do some more investigating to see if the installed security system in the house can be connected to a 3rd party monitoring service. If not, I can find out what a company like ADT would charge to install their whole system and what their monthly fee would be. Once you’re here, though, you may just opt for self-monitoring, because you can get an alert on your iPhone and see it live, and if necessary, you can immediately call the police department. That may be more reliable than having a monitoring service in Seattle. You can see on your iPhone whether you need to call the police, whereas a company like ADT is going to alert the police and you can get charged by the police department for false alarms after so many, whereas if you are watching, you know if you need to call the police and you can tell them exactly what’s going on as you watch it live on your iPhone.
If I may offer a word of encouragement, we have many retirees who spend several months every year elsewhere, and I just don’t hear anyone having any break-ins. Our crime rate here is one of the lowest in the entire country, and we don’t get enough credit for that wonderful reality. Honestly, if I were in your shoes knowing what I know and having lived here for 29 years, I wouldn’t miss a single night’s sleep over your house being vacant for a couple of weeks. Remember, we’re 3 hours from the Seattle/Tacoma metro area, and burglars and thieves don’t drive all the way here to steal. I can’t offer any guarantees, of course, but my friend, you don’t need to stress yourself out when there is little basis here for that. Anyway, I hope this is somewhat reassuring. Safety and low crime rates are big reasons I love it here so much as do so many other retirees. We have a lot less stress here than most areas of the country.
Reliable Sequim Crime Rates Now Available
Thank goodness, we now do have an accurate crime map of the Sequim and Port Angeles area and all of Clallam County. This is possible with recent advances in technology and the database improvements of law enforcement agencies. Here’s this new source, and it’s free online for anyone to view and even get alerts of updated criminal activity.
The service is called LexisNexis Community Crime Map, and you can go to that domain and see Sequim Crime Rates and view crime stats all over the country. This is a fantastic and reliable resource for us as the data is being pulled from law enforcement agencies’ own databases. They register to include their data in this service. Take a look at the sight when you’re at your computer, and you’ll find it very useful.
You’ll be able to do accurate comparisons, at least in towns and counties where the law enforcement agencies participate. Around Seattle, all the police departments of the cities participate, but it doesn’t appear King County Sheriff’s Office does outside the cities. Let’s do a quick comparison. Here is Sequim WA with crimes over the past month marked on the map in various colors representing the type of crime.
Now let’s look at the same geographic area of an area not too far from Sequim across the pond as we say on the Seattle side. It’s actually worse than it appears, because when you zoom in on these maps, this one below shows a lot more crimes at the micro level compared to Sequim.
There is a lot of data available on this service, and I’ll get into all that in an upcoming Youtube video. With LexisNexis you now have a good reporting service for Sequim crime rates.
Last Updated on May 30, 2024 by Chuck Marunde
