The following points are condensed from various articles and police reports about best practices.

• Enlist support of neighbors. Provide emergency notification phone numbers to your closest year-round neighbors. Make sure that your information with the LWIA is accurate. Let Nora Foster (norafoster1@lakewinonanh.org) know if there have been changes to the information in the Lake Winona Owner Contact Book. Neighbors also might occasionally park in your driveway during your absence to create a presence, and let you know if any packages arrive.
• Maintain property. Make sure when you leave for the season that you have repaired any hazards (such as missing steps or broken windows) to enhance the sense that the home is regularly occupied. Make arrangements for having snow removed or grass mowed.
• Install good locks. Secure external doors and windows with high-quality locks.
• Install lighting. Install outdoor lights with motion sensors. Solar motion lights are available if you have no outdoor electricity.  They make burglars or vandals feel vulnerable. It is useful to have internal lights on timers that do not always go on and off at the same time.
• Be aware of notes, postings, mail. Don’t leave notes on the front door or post on social media sites when you are coming and going. Be sure that mail, packages, and papers are not collecting.
• Lower phone sound. If you have a landline, put the phone on the lowest ring setting so that strangers passing by cannot hear that a phone is going unanswered.