After several years of seeing a drop in the number of break and enters in Waterloo Region, new statistics show a spike in the very personal crime.

Homeowner Ben Rugg knows what it's like to return home to find your personal belongings gone and personal space violated.

And he says the thieves knew what they were after, "I think they did their little bit of research…they went straight to the garage."

All it took was a propane tank through the back door of his home near Fergus, Ont. and the suspects were in. They allegedly made off with about $10,000 worth of property before his wife returned home.

Rugg says "If she were to have come home, and they are still here, who knows what would have happened."

Break and enters are one of the most common types of property crimes in Canada, and in some communities they're becoming too common.

Waterloo Region Police Service Staff Sgt. David Mathes says "There are some very desperate people out there, a lot of these crimes are driven by drug addiction."

A recent Statistics Canada report found break and enter rates in Waterloo Region are lower than the national average, but they surged almost ten per cent in 2009, while the national average dropped about four per cent.

Mathes says police aren't sure what caused the spike, but says they are taking it seriously.

"It can be a very traumatic experience for homeowners…it can happen at any residence, from an apartment building to an executive style home."

In 2009, Waterloo Regional police recorded more than 2,600 residential and commercial break ins, 250 more than in 2008.

They are among the top ten reasons people called police in 2009, with a new incident reported about every three hours and 22 minutes.

Const. Ray Mitton, a Waterloo Regional Police Community Resource officer, says "It's a get in, get out as quickly as possible, they say if they can get in and get out in two minutes, it's an easy target area."

Police credit a specialized break and enter enforcement team formed in 2006 with keeping the rate below the national average. At the time, break and enter rates were about 30 per cent higher, and the number of cases being solved was about 50 per cent lower.

But that specialized team was among several that were split up when 50 special investigations officers were moved back to front-line patrols in January, to better respond to community emergencies.

Newly formed teams will now be responsible for investigating a variety of offenses, Mathes says "Each patrol division assigned to the criminal investigations branch at the division has a crime management team."

But it remains unclear how the decrease in resources focused on break and enters will impact the statistics.

And police are reminding homeowners that it is also their responsibility to lock up and be on the lookout.

Mitton says "The biggest mistake is people not thinking it's not going to happen to them."

Coming up in part two: How to monitor police response to your area and what it could mean about break and enters in your neighbourhood.