My apartment is 3 years old and so far only one stray lizard after 2.5 yrs. Also killed one mosquito in three years. Hope to share my research/observation on pest prevention. My previous apartment was invaded by pests (lizards, mosquitos) which created a lot of frustrations which leads me to a careful study of pest prevention in my new apartment. Hope I can share my success with folks out here.
a. avoid dark furnitures - mosquitos and pest have natural survival instinct to camouflag themselves.
b. when design your apartment or furnitures, avoid creating corners that the eyes can't see. Corners that your eyes can't see are nests to them. If possible, get build-in furnitures instead of buying them 'cause build-in furnitures do not have a gap between the furniture and the wall. Eg. get a build-in wardrobe instead of buying one 'cause the gap between the wardrobe and the wall are excellent hiding place for pests.
c. avoid painting dark colors - pest tend to shunt away from bright places as they are more vulnerable
d. close windows and doors if no one present. My kitchen windows are opened only when I am cooking, once I finished cooking, I close them. Likewise for my living rooms and other rooms. When no one present in day, they are close. At nite, when we are sleeping, they are closed.
e. seal doors completely. The gap between the doors and the floor is where pest can creep into your house, get rubber seal to seal the door gaps. They are also great for dust prevention and aircon leakage. Sealing your doors and windows is one of the major key in pest prevention.
f. Keep you room unclustered. Things of no use, store them. An uncluster and bright room is repelling to pests. Also, if a pest is found, they can be exterminated easily in an unclustered and bright room since they have nowhere to hide.
I have zero problem with large croacoaches in last 3 years. One case of small croacoaches where I turn my kitchen over to locate the nest.
Ants - they are the hardest to battle. Everytime I see an ant, I trace to the hole and seal up the hole. They will find another hole and I have to repeat. The will disappear for a few months and then come back. It is an on-going battle.
Sometimes I heard lizards making noises outside my windows, they give me creeps and I am glad they are not in my house.
Pest is something that we have to deal with in the tropics. However, with correct understanding, I believe they can be prevented.
All the best in securing your home against pests!