What are the most important things to do when preparing to leave home for an extended period? [closed]

Snow removal. Nothing says uninhabited like snow piling up with no path to the entrance or garage.

Update your alarm, banks and credit card companies on your travel plans with up to date contact info and a local trusted person to contact for emergencies with the home. It really helps to have VOIP that you can access from the same number around the world.

Lower your heaters to a little above freezing in order to reduce cost but avoid pipes to burst from cold. You can suspend services such as internet but not really necessary for only two months. Disconnect any devices that do not need to be running while you are away as a safety measure.

Take as many valuables as you can out and put them in a safe location or an actual safe. Do backups of all your digital assets and store them in two locations, one of which should be off-site. This is true even if not travelling but it is a good time to remember to backup everything and make sure they are safe from the potential of losing your home to fire and possibility of theft.

Depending on where you live, you may still get stuff packed into your mailbox - mostly unaddressed stuff - even with mail retention, so place a No flier sticker on the mailbox and ask someone to pick up anything that is left there about once a week.

Although 2 months should not be a problem, it is best if you park your car with the hood facing outside so that you can get a boost for your car from its parked position. Some people disconnect the battery when away for several months.

To minimise risks you could:

• Turn off the heating and the main water stop tap. In winter, leave the heating on a low setting.
• Ask a neighbour to remove any newspapers or circulars left sticking out of the mail box/slot, which would show that the house is empty.
• Leave a couple of lights on timers, for the same reason.