Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Step1
Stop mail and newspaper deliveries while you're gone. Even if you have a mail slot where the mail goes into the house instead of piling up in the mailbox, don't just let it accumulate on the floor inside. If anyone looks through a window and sees a pile of mail on the floor, it's an obvious tip that no one is home. The post office will hold your mail until you return to collect it if you notify your carrier in advance. Stopping the newspaper is also easy with just a phone call.
Step2
Lock all doors, windows, pet doors and garage doors before you leave and be sure to turn off faucets, automatic ice maker water lines (which could malfunction and flood the kitchen while you're gone), and any other automatic controls on appliances or electronics you don't want running in your absence. Be sure to make a written check list for all these items and check them off as you secure them. If you get the feeling you've forgotten to do one of these tasks while you're gone, you can refer to the list to reassure yourself.
Step3
Enlist a trusted neighbor or friend to keep an eye on your home and remove any advertising fliers, throwaway papers and other freebies dropped at your door, in your yard or on your driveway that you can't control. Ask this neighbor or friend to do a once a day walk around your property and through the house to check doors and windows, the condition of the yard (make sure the lawn is cut and watering schedules are maintained) and keep up the general appearance of the home. Have the person raise and lower different front blinds or curtains each day so anyone cruising through the neighborhood more than once looking for easy pickings won't see the same pattern twice.
Step4
Put a few inside lights on automatic timers, and stagger the times they go on and off during the evening hours. Don't simply leave some lights on all the time you're gone because this a common mistake would-be burglars look for. It might also be a good idea to set a timer on your television so it comes on a few hours each night. That's another indication that someone's inside and your home is not a good candidate for a break-in.
Step5
Remove messages on your answering machine regularly while you're gone. You can do this remotely or have the neighbor or friend checking your house delete them or save them to another file during the walk-through. This keeps your "beep" short so callers won't know you have a number of unheard messages. Don't announce that you're away from home on your outgoing message.
Step6
Ask the police to check your home and patrol your area more closely while you're gone. In most cases, they will be happy to do this. Be sure and tell them you have a neighbor or friend checking in also so the police won't do a "Cops" take down of the good Samaritan you've enlisted to help you.
Novice 
