This is how you should leave your house when going on holiday

Christmas buys. Prices to die for. Eager questions from excited children about the departure day. Frantic excursions to tie up loose ends before you leave. Christmas is in full season now and its rush of excitement is upon us.
It’s that time when you have to make a list of relatives and friends you will be giving gifts.
You will also need to make lists of the necessities your family will need on your vacation.
With errands to the markets and shopping malls, you can easily get caught up anticipating your trip and forget to secure your home for the days or weeks you will be away.
For Katherine Osanya, a mother of four, this is the most exciting time of the year.
“It’s the only time I can take a properly deserved leave from work and I do not have to mind about the children because there is no shortage of relatives looking forward to visiting with them,” she says

quick tips

Clean the house before you leave. The long journey from the village will have you too tired for a day or two. Cleaning the house before you leave will give you that time to relax. Mow your lawn before you leave as an unclean lawn is an attraction for burglars
Lock the doors and windows. This is pretty obvious, but no matter the hurry you are in go round the house to ensure everything is locked, including the garage.
Clear the fridge. Unless you are leaving someone in the house, clear the fridge of everything perishable or edible.
Ask your neighbour to keep an eye on your house. This only applies if you are on friendly terms with them. Be sure to leave them with you contact details
Unplug all electronics, especially from the socket. Not only will this save electricity, but it will eliminate the risk of electrical fires.
Security system. If you can, get a home security system that can be accessed on your mobile phone.
Check the taps. You should also check the taps to ensure that no water is dripping.

STATE OF THE HOUSE

Protecting furniture
A few days to their departure for the village, Katherine Osanya says the house is given a thorough cleaning, especially on the inside.
“When everything is dry, we cover the furniture with sheets and roll the carpets in the sitting room.” Over the years, her only cause of apprehension had been the security of the house.
But all this changed when she and her husband decided to have someone to stay over while they were on their vacation.

Someone to watch over the house
Katherine Osanya explains, “We are careful not to let our house and compound appear neglected while we are away,” she says, “So we clean up the outside and cut the grass.” Enough food and money is left for the person staying behind so that they are not tempted to abandon the property to go looking for food. However, with the kind of neighbourhood Katherine’s family lives in, they are careful not to inform their neighbours of their departure, especially considering that only one person is left behind.
Instead, on their return, they bring some foodstuff from the village for the neighbours, as a way of strengthening the friendship. For Alice Opio, it is always important to have someone to stay in the house for the first half of the night.
“During the day the house is empty, so the neighbours probably imagine that we have gone to the beach or visiting,” she says. “However, in the evening, a caretaker comes in to spend a few hours. We instruct him to put on all the lights and to put the TV at a reasonable volume. This gives the house the appearance of being lived in,”Opio says.

Burglar proof your home
Burglars see the Christmas holiday as an opportunity to target empty homes. However, if you make your home more difficult to break into, they will probably target another home. This means that you make sure you have strong metallic doors both for the front and back door ways; the more burglar proof, the better.

Fridge and bills
For Sylvia Nabukwasi who lives alone, the arrangement is more precise because she does not trust anyone with her house but herself.
“The fridge has to be emptied and my priority is to ensure that all the utility bills are paid. I do not relish coming back to darkness.”

People you can leave in your house

So the Christmas season is here and you are planning on travelling but are worried about whom to leave in charge of your house while you are away. Here are some of the options you have.
Family
If your parents are able to move from upcountry, it makes sense for you to leave the house under their watch. But if you are moving upcountry to see them, you can leave a relative in charge. That way, you are sure that it’s in good hands and at the same time being well taken care of. Be sure to establish a clear communication channel with them. so that you can always be in touch in case anything goes wrong. Besides your parents, your siblings could also be a good option.

The house help
If you have a house-help that you trust and sure you can rely on, then they can surely be the right person to leave your house with. This can include the housemaid, the gatekeeper, and even the cleaner. You can leave certain parts of the house closed. These include, your master bedroom, and the living rooms.
Compiled by Gloria Haguma