How Protected Is Your Property When You’re Not There?
Covid-19 has prevented property owners from visiting their second homes during the lockdown period. Are you worried about the security of your accommodation?
Second homes offer fantastic investment opportunities, whether you wish to let out your property or just accumulate equity in it. However, the nature of second homes means that you spend less time at them than your primary residence. Never has this been truer than during the Covid-19 pandemic, when all but essential travel has been prohibited. It can therefore be stressful to look after your secondary home and keep it secure when you’re not around for weeks or months at a time.
Surveillance for Your Second Home
CCTV will allow you to self-monitor your second home and gain reassurance that it is secure. Our Essex CCTV team will supply, deliver and install our bespoke surveillance systems, which will allow you to track and record any security events that are occurring in the vicinity of your home. CCTV cameras can be concealed around your property if you wish, but be aware that the visible presence of surveillance systems is an enormous deterrent for criminals. When they see your CCTV cameras, they have the chance to make a judgment call as to whether it would be worth the risk to trespass on your property, with the vast majority dissuaded from doing so.
Securing Your Access Points
When you’re leaving your home unattended, it is vital that you secure all of the access points before you drive away. As well as locking the front door, and setting the alarm if you have one, remember to check that all of your windows are closed and locked, even those that aren’t at ground level. If you have basement or garage doors, then remember to check these too. You can add grates to basement windows for an additional layer of protection. Never be tempted to leave a spare key under a plant pot, within a welly or anywhere else around your home. Burglars will always look for an easy way to enter your home and a spare key is like an open goal for them.
The Illusion of Occupancy
Opportunist criminals will not necessarily be aware that your property is a second home. To give the appearance that your accommodation is occupied, you can make use of modern technology such as timer switches, devices which remotely open and close your curtains and apps that turn on your sound systems periodically or play the sound of a dog barking. All of these strategies provide the illusion that someone is in your home full-time.
Hire A Managing Agent
You might consider instructing a letting or managing agent to look after your home when you’re not there. This is particularly useful if you also let the property out to paying guests and need to arrange regular cleaning services. A managing agent can prevent letters piling up on the door mat and can reset your router so you don’t lose connection with your security systems. They will also be able to tell you if there are any problems such as leaks that need to be taken care of.
If you have a nagging feeling about the security of your second home, then it’s important to act immediately and increase protection around your property. This will give you peace of mind that your second home will be ready and waiting for you in exactly the same state that you left it in.