Lynnwood police say there has been an increase in the number of home burglaries in the first two months of this year.

So far in 2012, about 18 burglaries have been reported. City Council President Loren Simmonds was among the victims.

“Residential burglaries in our community are proliferating almost at an epidemic rate,” Simmonds said. “My house was one of those houses that was broken into roughly to the tune of $15,000.”

Simmonds said there is reason to believe the thieves are coming from other communities. Most of the burglaries happen during the daytime. They may knock on the front door to see if anyone is home before breaking in.

“I would encourage you to dial up your awareness about this type of thing,” Simmonds added. “It is something that is a black mark against our community and we’d like to curtail it as much as possible.”

Lynnwood police tell us they have been doing an extra emphasis on home burglaries. They’re also planning on having two burglary summits to teach residents how to avoid being victimized. Those meetings are still being planned.