7 Essential Tips to Protect Your Home While Away on Vacation | Mortgage Architects

Going away on vacation? It is not just your passport you need to worry about! Protect your home and belongings with the following 7 tips

Summer is a popular time for people to go away to exotic locales or closer to home at a cottage on the lake. No matter your destination, it is key to do some due diligence and make sure your home is safe and protected while you are away. Here are some tips to effectively protect your home and the belongings within it:

1. If you are going to be away for a longer period of time (over a week or more), have a trusted friend, family member or neighbour to check up on your home regularly and pick up any mail and/or newspaper that are delivered.

2. To give the impression you are at home in the evenings - install timers to turn on your interior lights. However, to best dissuade a savvy would-be robber, ensure the times work on a varied schedule as opposed to the exact times each day.

3. If your home is equipped with an alarm system, ensure you not only activate but also contact your home security service provider company to inform them of your absence.

4. Turn off all unnecessary appliances such as TVs, toasters, coffee makers and so forth. By doing so will you not only save on some energy costs but also protect your home from a possible electrical fire or power surge.

5. Every would-be robber knows the hide-a-spare-key trick so remove your spare key and instead leave it with a trusted friend, family member or neighbour.

6. Lock up any valuables including jewellery and other items in a fire-safe proof or at a safety deposit box at your bank.

7. Shhh! Keep mum on your public social media profiles. Don’t advertise to the world of your absence on your open public social media profiles. If you can’t help but post up-to-the-minute pictures of your travels, ensure your social media profiles are only visible to people you trust (in other words, increase your security settings).