BOULDER, Colo. -- Home burglaries are up 30 percent in the city of Boulder and police are asking neighbors to look out for each other.

Detectives issued an alert on the City's Web page and have distributed fliers in some neighborhoods.

Residents are being told to lock their doors and windows and put valuables out of the sight of thieves.

Investigators aren't sure why so many homes have been hit this year.

Sgt. Kurt Matthews told 7NEWS investigators are looking for patterns to the crimes and patrols have been stepped up.

Plain clothes detectives are staking out high-risk areas, but ultimately Matthews said it comes down to neighbors helping police.

"Obviously we can't be everywhere at once. We can't do everything and without the communities assistance we can't resolve the problem, "he said.

As police wrestle with the increase, the Internet has become a huge asset.

When Kelly Wyatt came across a police department memo warning residents to be on the lookout for burglars, she passed it along to her Yahoo! group.

The word quickly spread.

"It's a great community building tool. Its quick and its fast and it gets us all talking to each other," she added.