10 vital must-do’s before you rent your house and go traveling!
Last updated on March 15th, 2025 at 11:30 pm
Rent your house and go traveling – sounds great doesn’t it? Check these ten tips before you make the move!
Renting the house is a great way to either cover the mortgage while you travel, or, to fund your trip if you are at the stage of being mortgage free. Whichever it is, you want to make sure all goes well in your absence.
If you are renting your house while you travel, you are probably going for a fairly extended trip, so it is best to be well prepared to make sure you don’t have hassles from home while you are away. Tick off these 10 important things to do before you rent your house and go traveling.
1. Hire a property manager – carefully!
Do not leave home without one!
You don’t want to have to come home because the tenants aren’t paying the rent, or the tenants have caused massive damage, or the tenants didn’t clear the snow and so there are problems? Whatever it may be, the last thing you want is to have to deal with this while you are on the road or to have to come home because of it. So your key to peace of mind when you rent your house and go traveling is to hire a property manager!
Choose your Property Manager very carefully. Take your time and delay your trip if it means getting the right one. You need to know that they will actually manage the property – that they will respond immediately to any issues, that they will do regular inspections, and if there are problems, that they will get the tenants out of there quickly.
2. Don’t rush into accepting the first tenants that come along
Don’t rush into accepting the first tenants that come along – make sure the property manager is very aware of how you think about this before you leave. You really want the right tenants while you are away.
There are never any guarantees but it’s best to wait an extra week or two and get the right ones than take the first that comes.
3. Allow for repairs and maintenance costs and tenant down-time
Allow for repairs and maintenance costs, and for tenant down-time when budgeting.
If you are relying on constant payments and no maintenance costs to cover your mortgage or the funds for your trip, then you may find yourself in trouble.
Be very realistic as to what it will cost. Costs are not just for property managers fees and mortgage repayments, but any unforeseen repairs and maintenance and issues with tenants. Have that buffer before you go traveling.
4. Give your house a thorough check and inspection before you leave
Give your house a thorough check and inspection well before your departure date. Actively seek out anything that might go wrong and get it fixed before you go.
If you do this, it will be cheaper in the long run. You won’t be paying for the property manager to arrange it and you will have full control of the tradespeople you get to do the repair work.
Get a builder, electrician, plumber in to do an inspection for you – particularly if yours is an older home. It might sound over the top but if you are planning a year or more away then it may well save you a lot in the end.
5. Decide how to manage your garden
If you have a garden, decide what you want to happen. If you want it maintained to your standards, it is a rare tenant that will come near to that. Consider contracting a gardener you trust to do this, or are you happy to re-establish your garden when you return.
In reality the garden should be maintained to a basic standard as part of the tenancy agreement. Confirm with the property manager exactly what is expected as part of the agreement.
6. Make sure you have the right insurance
Absolutely make sure you have the right kind of house insurance. Your current insurance is unlikely to cover you while tenants are in the house.
You must advise your insurance company that you will have the house rented. Most companies will put you on a new cover which covers rental and tenants. Check if you are covered (worst case scenario) for loss of rent if, for example, the house burns down and needs rebuilding, and, for any other damage making the house unliveable
Those really are worst case scenarios – but they do happen. I have had a house burn down and was mighty happy I had loss of rent covered or it would have left a big hole in my pocket paying the mortgage. Its definitely key to peace of mind when you rent your house and go traveling!
7. Minimise storage and store it right!
Consider what you might want to store or keep. You may decide to store in a room in the house but be sure that it will remain dry and secure. A better option is paid temperature-controlled storage so you don’t even have to think about it.
Be brutal about what you store and what you should just get rid of. Do you ever really use it? Is it an important family heirloom or have personal value? If your answer is “no” question yourself why you would store it!
8. Set up everything online
Set up everything online if it isn’t already. You want to be able to liaise with the property manager – see rental reports and statements, view bank accounts to check payments have gone in etc. This is stating the obvious but check you have it all covered before you go.
9. Make sure critical payments are on direct debit
Make sure critical payments like insurance are set up on a direct debit or paid by your property manager so you don’t have to worry about missing any critical payments. Again it may be obvious but its good to check.
10. Have a back up!
Have a handy neighbor or friend as a back-up. Ask them to drive by occasionally to check things look well and alert you if they thing anything looks like it may be amiss.
Then go…. and enjoy your worry-free trip!
If you have rented your home and have any other tips, please comment below as I am sure there must be some other great tips out there.
Here’s to worry free travels!
Cheers
Sydney!
A Quick Guide of useful tools I use – to help you plan your trip
Insurance – Click here for travel cover with SafetyWing – almost any nationality, its ok if you are already traveling, up to 64 years old. Or click here for cover with EKTA – any nationality, any age and its ok if you are already traveling!
Internet – get a highly rated yesim eSim before you go – click here for yours.
Accommodation – book a hotel with booking.com or Tripadvisor, or, a hostel with Hostelworld
For the best walks in the areas you are going to, get AllTrails so you have offline maps to guide you
Car rental – compare prices and get the best deals with Rentalcars.com
Tours and Activities – find the best tours with GetYourGuide or Viator.
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