When you're away from your home, having your home security system turned on is the best thing you can do to reduce your risk of a break-in. Having a sign or sticker that displays your security company's logo can be enough to dissuade a burglar from targeting your home, whether you're simply at work or whether you're out of the country on a week-long vacation. Beyond this system, it's useful to form an alliance with a trusted neighbor; when you're away, the person can look after your home, and vice-versa. Here are some steps that your neighbor can take in this regard, beyond the customary things such as picking up your mail.

Moving Vehicles

There are a few different ways that your neighbor can look after your home in regard to vehicles in the driveway. When vehicles are present, it gives the home an appearance of being occupied. If you've taken your vehicle away on your trip, your neighbor can park his or her secondary vehicle in your driveway to give the illusion that you're home. If you took a taxi to the airport and your vehicle is sitting in your driveway, you can leave your neighbor the keys and he or she can change its position daily, further giving the appearance of someone being home.

Doing Seasonal Maintenance

Most people know to have a trusted neighbor cut their lawn when they're out of town, but there are other maintenance tasks that can give the home the impression of being occupied. For example, during the winter, your neighbor could shovel your driveway. After a significant snowfall, a house with an untouched driveway definitely stands out as likely being empty. If shoveling the driveway is too much to ask, simply have your neighbor walk up and down the driveway a few times. This can give the illusion that the homeowner has been coming and going but just hasn't had time to shovel the snow yet.

Involve His Or Her Children

If the neighbor has children, he or she can involve them in further giving the illusion that your home is occupied. If the kids want to go outside and kick their soccer ball around, for example, you can encourage the neighbor to send the kids to your lawn to play. If a prowler happens to be driving past to survey the neighborhood, the kids' presence on your lawn will suggest that you're home to anyone who might be checking out your residence.

To improve the security of your residence even more, consider buying a security system from a company like MD Electrical LLC.