Empty home? How to prepare for a long absence

22 Apr, 2021

Empty home? How to prepare for a long absence

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Every homeowner worries about their property. Whether you are actually living in the property or not the security and maintenance of your investment are naturally a concern. If you have to leave an empty home for a long absence, whether for work or holiday, the anxiety increases. So how do you go about preparing to leave your property for a long time? And what do you do to try to keep your empty home safe and sound? Here are some tips.

Prepare your empty home for a long absence

empty home
Thieves find it easy to pick out an empty home in the dark night after night

No matter if you are a college student, an office worker or a housewife, you are passionately waiting for holidays to head to a different city, country, or continent and enjoy the delightful vacation. However, even if you have finally got an opportunity to relax, you should stay responsible and attentive, taking proper care of your study, work, and home before you leave. College students can take maximum advantage of Internet-based platforms that can “write my essay online cheap.” Consequently, they will not have problems with the educational process as they come back.

Office workers may ask their colleagues to replace them while away. However, there is an even more significant question you should consider, “Who will take care of your home?”

Keep your empty home safe and sound

According to the statistics, over 30% of people ask neighbours or relatives to keep an eye on their accommodation when they are away for a long time. Nonetheless, the overwhelming majority of people do not have such an opportunity, so that they have to take care of it alone. In fact, it will not take you much time to unplug appliances and switch off electricity and water supplies.

Top tips to safeguard your empty home

  1. Find and brief pre-checked housesitters

To protect your empty home there find checked housesitters. Housesitmatch is a great platform to find suitable pre-checked house and petsitters. They will stay in your home for free and maintain your routines for you to keep everything safe and sound.

There is no better way to manage the property and keep everything working as you would want. You can bring them in a day or two before you leave the house. Help them to learn about the routines needed to maintain your property just as you like. Whether you have pets or an empty property, make sure the maintenance routines are clearly described. And that the sitter knows just how to run those routines and care for any essential operations in the house or outside.

     2. Before leaving your vacant home run this checklist

Follow the checklist and detailed recommendations, to make sure your home will be 100% safe during your long absence:

Managing the checks –

  • Maintenance – Run through your annual home maintenance. This way, you will be 100% sure your accommodation is safe on your departure.
  • Plumbing – There are a few steps to take to be confident of avoiding any plumbing-related issues in your absence. Turn off the main water shutoff, as well any water heater you have set up. If in any doubt contact a professional and licensed plumber to help you do everything right. Some people prefer to keep the main water shut-off valve open even when they are away, but it is crucial to double-check other items that may cause problems.
  • Electricity – Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of people are convinced that switching off appliances is enough to keep your home safe and protected during your long absence. However, the reality is often that there is a risk of flame occurrence even when your electric devices are simply left plugged in whether on or off at the wall. Additionally, it is inevitable to take into account specific weather changes that may trigger unexpected processes causing unexpected results. General electricity maintenance is always a good idea before any long absence.
  • Water supply – Whether you leave for the whole Summer, Winter, or any other season, you need to make sure you close the water supply. It is one of the most important actions you need to take to prevent pipe leakage or damage. If you leave for more than a week, you should block out the main water valve, eliminating any possible risks. However, sometimes, it is crucial for the water to keep flowing to eliminate possible disorders in your particular system so check first with your plumber or heating engineer.
  • Heating – While there are fewer problems with heating supplies during the Summer months, you will have to pay much more attention to it during Winter time. As you cannot switch off the system completely, you need to take actions that will keep your empty home protected. As mentioned by experienced travellers, you can just turn the thermostat down to 50-60 degrees so that your pipes will not freeze, and your bills will not be hilarious.
empty home
A well tended garden and home is a sign that the property is not abandoned

Managing the vacant property –

  • Air filters – Dirt and dust are the particles that affect the efficiency of your air conditioner. You must change the filters before leaving so that your device is fully functional on your return.
  • Key locks – Are you ready to leave for a long period of time? Double-check that you have closed all the windows, doors, curtains, and blinds. This is one way to protect your empty home from the sun, dust, and similar issues. Additionally, it is a great way to minimise wasted energy, also saving a considerable amount of money.
  • Appliances – It is another significant point to minimise expenses and protect your home while you are away. Disconnect all the devices, such as TVs, computers, microwave ovens, and other items that may cause a fire should a switch become faulty in your absence.
  • Trash – Although it is not the most critical point, and your home will not be harmed because of unattended trash cans, you still need to pay attention and manage rubbish collection routines in your absence. It’ll take a few minutes to get rid of the garbage, and the result will be worth the effort.

3. Manage tell tale signs of an absent homeowner

  • Post/ Mail – ensure the housesitter or someone comes in to clear any bundles of unattended post/ mail out of view
  • Subscriptions – Cancel any subscriptions you have for the extended period of absence. Piled up bundles of newspapers or magazines are a tell tale sign that the owner is away.
  • Garden – Ensure your garden is maintained in your absence. This is another reason a live in housesitter is a great benefit. Not only will they maintain the garden but they will also show the neighbourhood that someone is present for maintenance.
  • Trees – You can get in a professional service to help you manage the trees from the outset. Call up Irvine tree service to get some advice.
  • Milk – if you have your milk delivered to your door remember to cancel that order.

A final word on your empty home

Finally, with the check list done and ideally a housesitter in place, your home is 100% ready for your absence. If you have a student staying in your home as a housesitter, which is a popular thing for students to do to focus on their work, Buy essay from Proessays . Tell your friends that you will be away and that you have a housesitter in place. Then you can leave home with peace of mind. Let the adventures begin.

 

Handy articles and blogs about housesitting and housesitters

At Housesitmatch.com we like to share useful blogs and practical advice about housesitters, housesitting and pet sitting. We hope you find this small selection of our blogs on house sitters useful.

Housesitters keep pets safe at home and save money

What a housesitter does – Top 10 responsibilities

Property housesitters or vacant selling?

Keep your unoccupied rental property secure


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LamiaW

LamiaW

Founder and Director of HouseSitMatch - I'm a hands-on Admin on the site. Please ask any questions and as soon as I can I'll happily answer and assist where I can.

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