04-12-2007
Prevent your buy-to-let property becoming a Christmas break-in statistic
By Karen Baldwin for Simply Business
The 90’s hit film ‘Home Alone’ makes a joke out of a series of robbery attempts on a family home over the Christmas holidays while the owners are away, where the only thing standing in their way is the eight year-old boy who’d been left behind.
And while it’s unlikely that your tenants will head off to their families for Christmas this year and leave a child behind, the targeting of your investment property by thieves is much more probable.
Without a quick thinking Macaulay Culkin to defend your property from robbers, you and your tenants could find that your buy-to-let property is cleaned out of all valuable goods and even maliciously damaged.
Your property may not even have to be vacant for days or weeks to be a target; home break-in rates rise at this time of the year and your tenants may only be out for the evening in order for a robbery to occur.
Unfortunately, those stories of families coming home after an outing to find hundreds or thousands of pounds of gifts stolen from under the Christmas tree aren’t urban myths.
While you may be vigilant about your own home, it can be easy to overlook security arrangements for your investment property, believing it is the responsibility of the tenant.
While you would hope that your tenant is mindful of ensuring the security of your property in order to safeguard their own personal possessions, it is well worth working with your tenant to protect the property as much as possible, for everyone’s benefit.
Sadly, some thieves who break-in to other people’s property aren’t just content with stealing possessions, they may decide to inflict damage in the form of broken walls, smashed windows or even setting fire to the home. As the owner of the property, that presents a real threat to your investment and the ability to be able to earn income from it.
Whatever time of the year it may be, there are some fundamental measures that you, as the property owner, can take.
The Home Office provides the following tips:
• Windows. A third of burglars get in through a window. If you are replacing windows, install those that are certified to British Standard BS7950 ‘Windows of Enhanced Security’. Otherwise, install window locks that can easily be seen from outside.
• Doors. If the front and back doors are not secure, neither is the property. If you are replacing a door, take the opportunity to improve your security by installing a door that is certified to British Standard PAS 24-1 'Doors of Enhanced Security'. Ideally it should be fitted with a chain or bar and a window or door viewer for checking who’s at the door.
• Outside lighting. Good lighting outside of the home can put off or draw attention to a thief. The most appropriate form of lighting to use is high-efficiency low-energy lighting, controlled by a dusk-to-dawn switch so that it comes on only when it’s dark, providing a constant and uniform level of light
• Gardens, gates and fences. Prevent intruders getting to the back and sides of your home by installing strong fencing or gates. Check for weak spots where a thief could get into your garden, for example, a low or sagging fence, or a back gate with a weak lock.
• Burglar alarms. Many burglars will avoid breaking into a property with an alarm. There are many alarm systems on the market and these range from fairly cheap alarms, which you can fit yourself, to more sophisticated systems, costing hundreds of pounds, which need to be installed by professionals.
Even with these security measures in place, having the right Landlord’s Insurance is critical. There are two main elements to Landlord's Insurance – buildings cover and contents cover.
Buildings cover protects the property itself. If buildings cover is taken up then contents cover can be added to cover any furniture within the property. The policy can also be extended to include loss of rent, tenant default, terrorism, legal expenses and accidental damage.
Remember to inform the tenant that your insurance does not cover their possessions or furniture, and that they should take out their own contents cover in order to be fully protected.
If your tenants are going away for any period of time during these Christmas holidays, the best advice you can give them is to not make it obvious that the house is empty.
Some straightforward measures include:
• Leave some lights on or install a simple timer system for some of the inside lights so they will turn on and off throughout the evening
• Get a neighbour or trusted person to empty the mail daily. If absent for more than a few days, they can arrange for the post office to hold their mail
• Have someone put out the rubbish bins on bin day (even if they are empty) and bring them in later
• Cancel newspapers and any other regular deliveries
• Turn down the volume of the telephone ring
• Hang some (old) clothes on the line
• Have someone park their car in the driveway
• Make arrangements for a friend or family member to stay in the house while away.
• Trim the grass before leaving (and ask them to arrange for it to be cut again if they will be away for an extended period)
Some basic effort by both you and your tenant – with the safety net of insurance should the worst happen – will ensure that the only visitor to your investment property this Christmas is a large man in a red suit.
