FOR DOUG WILSON, having a security guard in his neighborhood means having peace of mind.

Last summer, a man hired to paint Wilson’s home broke in after his boss left to get more supplies.

Although his alarm system was tripped and police were contacted immediately, the first one to arrive on the scene was Bridgewater’s gatekeeper. As a result, the security guard captured the suspect and held him until authorities arrived.

Wilson, president of the neighborhood’s homeowners association, believes the suspect would’ve gotten away had it not been for the gatekeeper. “Having a guard gives us a high level of security,” he said. “It’s something a gate just can’t do.”

Although national trends show the desire for a gatekeeper is on the decline, many North Jackson and Madison County residents have opted to hire the modern day sentries to increase their safety.

Several neighborhoods, including Reunion, Meadowbrook Highlands, Bridgewater and Dinsmor, already have them in place. Another high-end neighborhood, Country Club of Jackson, is now building a guard house at one of its entrances.

Mike Zito, a member of the Country Club Association, said in a recent interview that the guard, once hired, will help control traffic and have the ability to take down tag numbers and vehicle descriptions of the folks entering the subdivision at St. Andrews Drive.

Developers like Jim Robertson, who is developing the Chenal subdivision in Madison County, haven’t ruled out gatekeepers, either. “Once we get a few people out here, if that’s what they want, then that’s the way we’ll go,” he said. The subdivision, located on a cul-de-sac, will feature a dozen 1.5 to 2-acre lots and homes that cost $1.5 million and more.

Real estate agents’ trends show that the majority of high-end neighborhoods being built locally, those with houses worth $500,000 or more, have a gate, a guard or both.

IN ADDITION to providing more security, many real estate agents say having a gatekeeper greatly increases property values in a community.

The National Association of Realtors reported that properties behind a gate are 10 percent more valuable than those that are not.

“The fact that some communities are guarded as well, increases the property values even more,” said Charlotte Smith, owner of Charlotte Smith Real Estate in Jackson.

Smith also has a gatekeeper in her North Jackson neighborhood.

She and her husband have lived in Meadowbrook Highlands for almost 10 years. The neighborhood hired a guard several months ago, at the urging of one of its residents.

“One of our residents was interested in having a guard, so he made a large donation to enable us to hire one without affecting the homeowners,” she said. “It’s provided us with a wonderful sense of security.”

Once the guard was in place, Smith said several changes were made that limited where and who could enter the exclusive subdivision.

Before the guard was hired, service personnel, like those dropping off dry cleaning, could enter through either the west or the east gate entrance, using a generic security code provided by residents.

Now, she said, personnel have to enter and exit through the east gate by way of the gatekeeper.

Steve Melman, director of economic services with the National Association of Home Builders in Washington, D.C., said a recent consumer preference survey conducted showed that 17 percent of those who purchased a home in the past year said the presence of a gatekeeper influenced their decision.

That number, while still significant, is down from recent years, he said. According to a similar study conducted in 2004, nearly twice as many said a guard was important. And, in 2000, the number of those influenced sat at 21 percent.

Melman said several factors could contribute to the recent decline, including the improvement of home security systems and the fact that crime is decreasing across the board nationwide. A reason for the past increase could’ve been tied to the attacks on September 11, 2001.

SOME DEVELOPERS, though, believe that having a gate and hiring a guard leads to overkill. Gary Slade, the developer of the Long Leaf subdivision in Madison County, said he is “not considering” a gatekeeper for his new gated community.

“Having a guard would be a little over the top for our location,” he said, noting the low crime rate and police protection there. He does, however, feel that more guards will be hired to patrol communities in the future as the area grows.

Wilson, though, doesn’t mind that his community is a trendsetter. “Nothing beats having a human set of eyes watching over you.”