Securing Your Home While You are Away

Take the following precautions whenever you’re going to be away for an extended time. You can discourage intruders by creating the impression that someone is in the house or will return shortly.

1. Keep drapes and shades as you normally have them. Don’t make the mistake of giving your house that “closed for the season” look with every window shuttered.

2. Hire a house sitter or have a neighbor come in to turn on lights and open and close drapes.

3. Stop your newspaper delivery and have your mail held at the post office. Piles of papers are a sure sign that no one is home.

4. Set a few timers and set them to turn lights on and off at different times in different parts of the house, echoing your typical patterns.

5. Leave a car parked out front or in the driveway. Or invite a neighbor to park there every day or so. If you live in a snowy area, arrange for someone to shovel your walk and driveway, or even just to drive in and out of your driveway when it snows to create the impression that someone is home.

6. Adjust your answering machine message if necessary. You may want to tell callers that you’ll “be back shortly” so scammers don’t hear an invitation to an empty house.

7. Put away large trash cans, outdoor furniture, or anything else that could provide climbing assistance to intruders.

8. Consider buying a safe. If you don’t have a safe, you may want to hide small items like jewelry or cash in unlikely places (see below for suggestions).

9. Leave the radio or TV on. It can’t hurt