Traveling for the Holidays: Make Your House Look Lived In

It’s not often this blog gets used to talk about home security. But with the holidays fast approaching and many of our clients planning to go out of town, we thought now would be a good time to bring up the issue. Proactive home security can help keep your property safe while you are out of town. Failing to be proactive could open you up to burglary and other property crimes.

As a personal concierge service, My Divine Concierge is more than happy to help look after your home while you’re away. We are by no means security experts, just so you know. But we have enough experience in the personal services industry to know what it takes to protect your home while you’re on vacation. The key is making your home look lived in.

Criminals Don’t Want to Get Caught

Criminals are no different than anyone else inasmuch is they don’t want to get caught doing something wrong. Your average burglar is very cautious so as not to draw any attention to him or herself. Burglars want to get in, snatch a few items, and get out as quickly as possible. Doing so is contingent on targeting unoccupied homes.

Making your house look lived in gives you the upper hand by forcing criminals to make a quick decision. If they think there’s any chance of someone being inside your home, they are likely to move on to a softer target. If they know your house is empty, there is incentive for them to break in.

How to Do It

It’s not enough to know that making your house look lived in will reduce your chances of being victimized by a criminal. You also need to know how to do it. Below are a few suggestions, some of which you have probably heard before:

Stop the Mail/Newspaper – The first thing you want to do is stop delivery of your mail and newspaper. There is no better signal to burglars than stacks of mail in the box and a half-dozen newspapers in the driveway. If you don’t want to stop delivery, ask a friend or family member to come collect your mail and newspapers.

Move the Cars – Assuming you are leaving at least one car behind, don’t just park it and forget about it. Ask a neighbor or friend to come by and move the car around at least once per day. Moving cars keeps burglars guessing.

Program Your Lights – Next, consider programming your lights. However, don’t program the same lights to turn on and off at the same time every day. Stagger them to give the impression of different people being in different parts of the house.

Trash Collection – A really good way to cast doubt in the mind of a burglar is to stay on schedule with your trash collection. Again, ask a friend or neighbor to come by and put your trash cans out on the appointed day.

Some people like to employ technology – like monitored alarm systems and video doorbells. While we cannot endorse any particular brand or system, we can say that video doorbells are really good tools for stopping property crimes.

A video doorbell lets you see and talk with anyone standing at your front door, even if you’re not home. A burglar who steps up on your porch will have no idea if you’re there or not. The fact that you can see him and he can hear your voice causes just enough doubt to send him packing.

Are you planning to go out of town for the holidays? If so, please do yourself a favor and implement strategies to make your house look lived in. We would be more than happy to help if we can. Reach out to us so that we can discuss your needs.


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