We consider buying an apartment, which has previously been used as a shop. Our only concern is that it has large windows (2,5 meters x 2,5 meters), which would function like an invitation to burglars. I am thinking that we could buy bullet-proof glass to make it much more difficult for burglars, though, I have never heard about anyone doing this, and I have not been able to find any shops selling such glass. Therefore, I was wondering whether bullet-proof glass of this size would really help against burglars, and what we would be talking about with regards to price compared to ordinary glass (are we talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars per window or just a few thousands)?
EDIT: I am not so worried about economic loss, this is more an issue of whether I would actually get out of bed if I heard strange noises in the apartment at night.
Best Answer
There is a product called Window Security Film which is a thin (a couple mm) film that adheres to the window and makes it exceptionally difficult for someone to break. Many lock smiths/security companies can install it. Here's a video of it in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYdVK3BqPfk
One of the biggest "problems" with it however is that because it's invisible, people will still try to break the glass. For this reason, often it is installed along with window bars since this provides a visual deterent, but they are pretty ugly for residential installs.