It is time for summer vacations, which means leaving your house and enjoying some much needed R and R (or adventure). But you’re also leaving your home and a majority of your possessions alone, so what can you do to protect your home?
1. Stop your mail and newspaper.
2. Tell the police you’ll be traveling. A lot of people don’t know this, but most police departments will do a vacation check which involves driving by your house. It may give you some extra piece of mind.
3. Ask a friend to drive by or come over occasionally. If you have a trusted friend or relative, ask them to house sit. It can be a little get away for them too. My sister in law loves staying at our house because we have a nicer bed than she has, so it’s like a mini vacation for her (when I was pregnant, I decided enough was enough with our old bed and we bought a purple bed. It is amazing).
4. If you are close to and trust your neighbors, let them know. The more eyes of people you trust on your home, the better. Even better if your neighbors work from home or are retirees (like in my neighborhood. I love it).
5. Hide your valuables, and not in the normal places you would think of like your underwear drawer. Remember, burglars will destroy your house very quickly, so keep that in mind. Really, the best thing to do is have a safe deposit box and store stuff there.
6. For the love of God, do not post on social media that you are going/ are on vacation. Seriously, save those pictures for when you get back. I can’t believe this is even still a thing, but I have friends that post their vacations in real time and I just want to shake some sense into them.
7. Put some lamps on timers and have them mimic your patterns. If you typically hang out in your living room until 10 PM, have the light turn off in there after you turn on a bedroom light, etc.
8. My dad was always adamant that you should turn off the water to your house when you leave. I do this when we leave for an extended time. It saves you money if you have any unknown drips and you won’t come back to a flooded house!
Is there anything that you do to make sure your house is safe?
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