The world that we live in is an incredible place to explore. However, travelling can be challenging when you own a home. 

Here are some helpful tips that will ensure your home is well maintained while you’re away.

Hold your mail or have someone collect it

There are services around the world that are helpful for those who need to tame the amount of post that comes through your letterbox on a daily or weekly basis. If you’re away from home for weeks at a time, you don’t want to come back to full mailbox, or potentially is left out for strangers to take.

Royal Mail offers a Keepsafe service, which is a great option when needing to have your post held for a certain period of time. There’s also the option of having someone you trust, take a key while you’re away. They can then take your post and hold onto it, or gather it up on a weekly basis, to put away somewhere safe until you return.

In the US, there’s a hold mail service for when you’re traveling, too. You can set it to be delivered at a date of your choosing.

Either option is great for keeping an overflow of mail in check.

Trim back trees and shrubs

When it comes to keeping your home well maintained, it’s important to look at trimming back any trees or shrubs outside. Anything that’s overhanging on your property is likely going to cause some damage, and it’s most likely to happen when you’re away. 

Trimming back will help ensure nothing is damaging your property while you’re away. 

You might want to hire a service to keep on top of it if you’re going to be away for weeks or months on end, particularly in warmer months when everything grows more quickly.

Maintain landscaping with low-maintenance options

To help keep the garden space well maintained while you’re away for periods of time, you should look at adjusting your landscaping with low-maintenance options.

That means picking out plants or flowers that don’t take much when it comes to keeping them alive. The ones that can battle through most seasons and that don’t need to be in certain places around your backyard are the ones to go for. Ask at your local nursery for native plants that do well with not a lot of caretaking. 

A leaf mulcher is a great piece of equipment for prepping your garden during the cooler months and to protect your plants while you’re away in the interim.

Test fire alarms, smoke detectors, and cameras

Fire alarms and smoke detectors are something you want to check each time you come back and each time you go away.

These alarm and detector systems are crucial for keeping your home safe, even when you’re not there. If there were a fire or potential gas leak, at least your neighbors who live nearby would be able to alert you of the noise. 

Many homes have ring-type cameras in their home so if the smoke detector or fire alarms are going off, then you’re going to notice it. When these alarms don’t have working batteries in them or a battery backup for power outages, you won’t be made aware of the potential fire hazard until it’s too late.

Install a security system

Security systems are helpful to have, especially when it comes to keeping your home safe and secure. While you’re off travelling around parts of the world, a security camera is going to help keep tabs on the home, even when you’re thousands of miles from away.

Security systems are a deterrent for any wannabe thieves too, as they’re less likely to steal from a home that looks like a fortress to get in. They’ll want homes where they can make as little noise as possible, which is why you want plenty of alarms and motion-sensor lights set to activate while you’re away.

Have someone house-sit 

When you’re looking to keep your home safe and sound, you might want to consider having a house sitter in your home. This might not always be possible or financially doable but if you have a bit of extra cash, it might be useful to put a house sitter in place for the duration of your travels. 

You could also just have them house sit every so often so that the house is being looked after at various points.

Many global travelers also participate in house swaps! If this is of interest, there are several trusted organizations, and groups on socials. Join and take note of how it is run, and who people trust.

Time your lights to make it look occupied

Your lights in the home are always a great way to create the illusion that there’s someone in the home, which is why it’s worth making use of them when you’re away.

While it does increase the cost of your electricity over the time you’re traveling, it’s a good way to keep away anyone who might be scouting your home and hoping you’re away in order to rob it.

Timing your lights to come on is pretty easy to do with the help of old-school plug in timers, as well as smart lights and apps on your phone. It’s easy enough to set up and you are more than likely to be able to control your lights with just a few taps of a button.

Neighbors

And, as always, ask your neighbors to keep an eye on the place. You can thank them with some lovely souvenirs from your travels, as well as a home-cooked meal once you’re back (bonus points if you took a cooking class abroad and can showcase your new recipes!).