Advice for leaving house unoccupied (3-6 months)

[GHouse]

Hello,

I would like to have some advice regarding leaving my house unoccupied for a few months. I'm going abroad for work and was wondering how to prepare my house to stay safe and sound while I'm away. I'd appreciate any tips, whatever small.

Thanks

Check your insurance covers it.
Lights on timers? Security lights?
Someone coming in to check mail etc?

Some estate agents that do lettings/property management do offer caretaker services for vacant properties. They will for a fee arrange things like a gardener to trim your hedges and now your lawn. A regular weekly inspection inside and out to ensure no damage and if repairs needed (broken window, leak) can arrange for them to be done. And also be available in country to handle disaster, say a house fire and insurance paperwork. Then too, if you decide to lease or sell while away you already have an estate agent in place with house keys to handle things.

Can you have someone you trust to come in and run the taps? I know someone who had an empty house over the winter and the pipes burst when they froze too much. Resulted in a £75,000 insurance claim for a flooded house.

You could Airbnb it for a short term let. There are also agencies that have short term stays to protect empty houses. There is an empty school near us that has 4 people officially living there to prevent damage / squatters.

Can also earn you a tidy sum

tell your insurance company, if necessary insure with another provider.

Turn your water off at the mains and drain of your system. Our leave thermostat at 15 degrees the whole time to prevent leaks. Your insurance company will probably insist on this.

Thanks so much for all the valuable advice.

Some questions:

• If I need to leave heating on low so that the pipes wouldn't freeze, would this mean that I wouldn't be able to turn off the water/ electricity and boiler?

• What about beds/ mattresses, sofas and the like, is it advisable to cover them in plastic sheets to avoid dust, etc. or is it better to leave them as they are?

Check the terms of your insurance. I have family members who spend a good chunk of the year abroad and their policy is invalidated (as are most standard insurers' policies) if the house is left unattended for more than 60 days. Others are 30 days and 90 days - I've never heard of an insurer allowing a property to be left unattended for more than 90 days. I don't think someone going in is enough either, I think it actually has to be occupied i.e. lived in.

You can get specific empty house insurance, the one I had I either had to drain the water and turn it off or set the heating to 15 all the time to prevent leaks. If you went with draining the system you could turn electricity off. You'll also have to comply with ins company security Requirements.

Let one of the neighbours park their car on your drive , ( if you have a drive )

You need to advice your insurance company and they will give you a list of do’s and don’ts depending on the property.

Hi and thanks all very much.

Other questions:

• If I leave the heating on, this means I won't be able to turn off the water as I have radiators, right?

• If no one turns on the taps regularly and flushes the toilets, what would happen? and what should I do to avoid any problems without having anyone to turn on the taps, etc.?

• Any ideas about sofas, mattresses, etc.?

Thanks in advance.

If toilets et.c aren't flushed there's a risk of legionnaire's from the sitting water (we have an office building closed over the summer and staff go in every week day to flush the loos. estates staff did this during lockdown).

I'd be concerned that turning off your heating would result in damp for your soft furnishings - bed, sofa etc. Can you look at renting it out short term or emptying the house of furniture and putting it into storage?

Could you allow housesitters?

What’s the did fence between a cold I heated house and furniture storage?

put toilet cleaning tablet in cistern & down loo & shut lid
www.homebase.co.uk/unibond-aero-360-device-and-neutral-refill_p574728 get several of these types of humidifiers & place in each room
I would turn off ch & water & electricity insulate any outside pipes get your gutters cleaned & check drainpipes

ironic laugh - renting out short term! no - ditto house sitters

Why not mumwon?

Ive used Rent a room scheme . Leet some live in your house they can tensure alls well whilst covering costs. Its a case of getting insurance n if you luve alone and have w5% council tax reduction. You have to advise council of change of circumstances. Youll need a gas cerificate to say all central heating and appki2anxes are safe eg gas fires. I changed my bedroom knobs to those that have a little keylock for extra privacy. The lovely woman who came fto stay didnt use hers . We got on great n she was tidier than me. I had to up my game! Usual getting references from previous renters and employer put my mind at rest. Money very helpful and tax free upto cerain level check govt renr a room sire for latest info.... can help pay your si months rent wherever you go. Im gonna do it again post pandemic

A relative left house empty for ages. It was stressful but fine.

Insurance!

Council tax - you might be able to get a rebate on this? Not sure!

Mail redirection

Heating - either have thermostat set to a few degrees above freezing, heating on for an hour at coldest part of night. Or turn off water, drain system, and switch off boiler. Depends on how reliable your boiler and electrical supply is - if it’s likely to conk out then the pipes may freeze.

Windows - if you can leave them a tiny gap for ventilation that helps, but obviously needs to be secure & rain-proof. If you’ve trickle vents, make sure they’re fully open and clean.

Put bedding, cushions etc in plastic boxes. You can buy silica gel to absorb moisture - cheapest is to get that “swell gel” stuff meant for hanging baskets, or ask people to save sachets from packaging from shoes / bags etc.

Irreplaceable stuff - you need to leave it with someone else.

Paperwork - make sure you have photos of anything you need. If you don’t need it, shred and bin.

Leave appliance doors open.

Lights and radio on timers..

Mice - put plenty poison down against rodents. If it doesn’t get used, that’s fine. Obviously you can’t use traps. Even if you’ve never noticed any in the past.

We left my mum's house empty for a year. Heating was on 15 all winter as per insurance instructions. We were visiting occasionally. My mum didn't have trickle vents but I guess as heating on there was no damp or condensation at all. We left all beds made up as house was cleared and dressed for sale. We used water occasionally to make a cup of tea or use loo. It was all fine.

@forgotmymnname law on renting is changing & getting people out (section 21) may well be stopping - at the moment giving notice is complex & even under normal times it can take 6 months - renting can work well but it is best done as a business & certainly unfurnished but it can also be risky - its amazing how much damaged can be done
I am not sure how the rules on house sitters work or how secure the arrangement is

My parents went into a care home and house was empty. As well as getting specialist contents and buildings insurance we also had to visit and inspect the house once a week. I also gave a nice neighbour a key in case anything needed checking. Also make sure post can't be seen through the front door

Airbnb works well if you're in a popular area - very easy to use. All you need is a reliable cleaner and an extra huge clean/purge of stuff before you go away. A locked cupboard or attic helps.

If you leave the electric on you can get some ring cameras set up so you can see the house in your phone whenever you want to.

We left mils house empty for a few months while we sold it. We had to visit and stay one night once a month to keep the insurance valid