Going away over the festive season, for some of us, is an absolute necessity. It is all about getting away and relaxing after a long year and, to a certain degree, to recharge in preparation for the year ahead. This isn’t likely to happen if you’re sitting at your dream holiday destination, worried about all the possible things that could go wrong with your house.
We would all love to have someone that promises us that our houses won’t be ransacked or burnt to the ground when we get back, but fortunately a lot of it lies in your hands.
So rather than tempting fate, we’ve put together a list of our top tips to keep your house safe so that you can relax rest assured while you’re away.
- Of course the ultimate solution would be to find a responsible, honest house sitter, but let’s be honest; it’s easier said than done. Finding a house sitter that doesn’t host a house party the second you leave town is almost as possible as finding a leprechaun with his pot of gold at the end of every rainbow. But if you do, hold on tightly and show your appreciation. Ask friends and family to recommend someone they have used in the past instead of sifting through Gumtree personals.
- If you can’t find a trustworthy house sitter to hold the fort, you might have want to remember to cancel (or hold) any mail or newspaper subscriptions you might have for the period that you are going away. The pile of old newspapers and mail is kind of a dead giveaway that you’re out of town.
- Ask your friendliest neighbour (preferably not the creepy old man on the corner) to take your dustbin out on trash collection day. You would be surprised how observant criminals can be.
- Technology is a wonderful thing and over time a variety of timers have been developed. These especially come in handy when you’re planning a holiday. You can find a timer for everything; from setting your irrigation system to setting lights to switch on and off at certain times. These timers make it a lot easier to make it seem as though life is carrying on as usual.
- We know how some of you love keeping your social media updated to the very minute, but posting about your holiday plans all over social media is the quickest way of alerting criminal elements of an easy target. And no, we are not suggesting that your Facebook friends are criminals, but it is a choice platform for opportunists.
Planning a holiday already involves quite a bit of admin, but you will, in the end, avoid a lot of unnecessary hassles. Don’t pay the price, plan ahead, keep your house safe and then put your feet up to relax!
