What to do Before you Go Away on Holiday

Time away from the home is a great tradition that people enjoy at least once per year. If you are a seasoned traveller you already know how to leave your home and what needs to be accomplished before you leave to ensure that your house is properly cared for, but even if you know what you are doing, Finchley House Sitting would like to ensure that you have all of these things in mind. You may know most of these, but a little reminder never hurt anyone.

Folder of Information

Hotels do an amazing job of informing people of their services and all that the hotel has to offer. These folders contain a great deal of useful information and can make you trip far more enjoyable. When you leave your home in the hands of another person, even someone as experienced as Finchley House Sitting, you need to make sure that they have all the information that they need to accomplish the job in great fashion. Here are some of the things you will want to include in your own hotel style folder.

An Agreement – We live in an age where the spoken agreement is of little affect. People can forget what is contained within an agreement, but if it is written down and even signed by the sitter and the person they are sitting for everyone is accountable to it and there is little room for the sitter to say that they were unaware of the rules.

Contact Information – We at Finchley House Sitting make sure that all of your household needs are accomplished while you are away, but from time to time questions or emergencies may arise and therefore it is vital to have all of your contact information on hand. It is also recommended that you provide alternate contact information in the event that you cannot be reached. The alternate information can be a trusted friend or family member.

The Rules – Every home has ground rules. Finchley House Sitting ask that your write ground rules down to ensure that we do our job effectively without violating any landlord agreements or a particular room that you wish the house sitter to stay out of.

Rubbish Collection – Even while we are away, life does go on at home. That being said, the rubbish collection will come on a certain day of the week. Please inform your sitter the day that they need to have the rubbish prepared for collection and any special instructions that may come with that.

Emergency Numbers – Apart from your contact information you will need to have a written list of emergency contacts. Again Finchley House Sitters is highly proficient in preventing emergencies from happening, we need this information to ensure that in the event of an emergency we know what to do to protect your home.

The Mail – Depending on the length of your holiday, you may need to reroute your mail. If rerouting is not an issue, inform your sitter as to what exactly to do with your mail. It may not seem like a big issue, but you do not want to come home and not know where all of your mail has gone.

Let Others Know

It is an important thing to let people know when you are away. This is for your safety as well as your sitter’s. Friends and neighbours come by from time to time and if you are not at home it is a wasted trip and can be a little embarrassing for the sitter and the person at the door. In addition to informing your neighbours and friends you also need to inform any service people such as those the mow your grass, clean your home, or the gardener. You can either suspend your service for the time you are away or leave Finchley House Sitters with the information to properly allocate and pay your service people.

Clean Up

One of the biggest issues that face a homeowner when they are coming back is whether the home is clean. Some sitters do not understand the importance of cleaning up after themselves, but no homeowner wants to come home from a wonderful holiday only to find that their home is a wreck. Where others may fail to ensure the cleanliness of your home, we at Finchley House Sitting want you to come home to the exact place you left. All of our sitters are trained to clean up after themselves and keep the home as it was when you left, so there are no surprises.

Your home is a part of you and just because you are on holiday there is no reason to let that vital part of your existence become neglected simply because you cannot be there. Finchley House Sitting wants to keep your home for you and we want to keep it exactly as you wish, so you have one less thing to worry about while you are enjoying your holiday.