Travel Preparation: Getting Your Home Ready for Your Vacation

By Michele Blandino

The airline tickets have been purchased, the hotel reservations made and you even remembered to request a baby seat for your rental car. The dog has been safely delivered to the kennel and your bags are packed. Sounds like you’re all ready to go on vacation.

Unfortunately, you’ve forgotten about one very important detail: making sure you’ve gotten your home ready for vacation as well.

Besides locking the door, setting the deadbolt and turning on the burglar alarm, exactly how does one get their home ready for vacation? There are actually several important steps you should take.

Don’t Let Things Pile Up

The first thing you should do is ask a trusted friend or neighbor to collect your mail and newspapers. In order to give the appearance that you are still at home, it is important that the person you ask to gather these items – particularly the newspaper – pick it up around the same time you typically do. For example, if you usually grab your newspaper from the driveway each morning, having it left there until late in the afternoon or evening will provide an indication to potential burglars that you are out of town.

If you are not comfortable asking a neighbor to take care of these tasks for you, you can ask your local post office to hold your mail for the duration of your trip (they will probably ask you to complete USPS Form 8076 – Authorization to Hold Mail). You can also contact your newspaper carrier and ask that they suspend delivery while you are away; while you still may need to pay for the paper, the couple of dollars this will cost will certainly be worth the peace of mind it will provide.

Have Someone Watch

Again, if you have a trusted friend or neighbor, ask that they periodically walk around your home every few days to make sure everything appears to be alright. Depending on your level of comfort with the person you ask, you may also want to provide them with a key to your home so they can make sure all is well on the inside as well. If you do not have anyone who can keep an eye on things for you, do not hesitate to contact your local police department to let them know you are going to be away and ask that they periodically come by to check on your home.

Regardless of who you ask to keep an eye on things, you should be sure to provide them with a way to reach you if necessary such as your cell phone number or the address and telephone number of where you will be staying.

Lights!

While using timers to periodically turn lights on and off is always a good idea, many people rely on only one timer that switches the same light on and off each day. For timers to be most effective, it is better to use several timers on different lights throughout the house. This will more effectively create the appearance that someone is at home.

Finally, be sure to retrieve any spare keys you leave outside. If a friend or neighbor will be coming into your home while you are away, give them the key rather than leaving it under a door mat or other outdoor spot; this will help ensure your home remains secure.