By Dean Maddox, Public Safety & Crime Reporter

A new survey of homeowners shows Georgia leads the nation in one habit: locking the front door. Ninety-three percent of Georgia residents always lock up when they leave home, the highest rate in the country.

That number makes sense. Atlanta has wrestled with violent crime and car break-ins for years. Add to it the city’s rocky relationship with its own police department — from near “defund” votes to an officer arrest that sent morale crashing and led to hundreds leaving the force. When residents see crime rising while cops are handcuffed by policy, it’s no surprise they’re locking up tight.

The survey paints a bigger picture too. States with more small-town, family-oriented cultures — places like Utah, Oklahoma, Idaho, and West Virginia — reported much lower rates of locking up. Neighbors still trust neighbors, and there’s a sense that community is its own kind of security. Stronger law-and-order leadership in those states doesn’t hurt either.

California landed at 85%. That’s lower than you’d expect for a state where crime and public disorder make daily headlines. Residents clearly know the Golden State isn’t the safest, but the numbers show plenty still leave their homes more exposed than reality probably calls for.

Elsewhere, Connecticut, Michigan, and Indiana followed Georgia near the top of the list, while North Dakota, Maine, Idaho, and West Virginia were at the bottom, with fewer than 60% always locking up.

The survey also found Americans are most concerned about having technology items like laptops and TVs stolen, followed by sentimental keepsakes and personal documents.

What it all adds up to is simple: in cities where crime is climbing and police have been weakened by politics, people are more likely to live behind locked doors. In smaller, family-oriented states, trust still counts for something — and the front door stays open a little more often.