Securing a Holiday Home

A holiday home sits empty for much of the year and often passes through many hands. Here is how to keep a Surf Coast holiday house or rental secure, from managing keys to protecting an empty property.

A Different Challenge

Why a Holiday Home Needs Extra Thought

Torquay and the wider Surf Coast are full of holiday homes, and they come with security challenges a regular home does not. The property is empty for long stretches, which gives anyone with bad intentions time and privacy. It is also often visited by a rotating cast of guests, cleaners, agents and family, so over the years it is easy to lose track of how many keys exist and who still holds one.

That combination, an empty house plus keys in lots of hands, is exactly what makes holiday homes a softer target than the place you live in every day. The good news is that a few sensible measures handle most of the risk. It comes down to controlling who can get in, making the place look lived in when it is not, and being able to reset access quickly when you need to.

The Key Problem

Take Control of Who Can Get In

The single biggest weak point in most holiday homes is key control. Every guest who has stayed, every cleaner and every agent may have had a key at some point, and standard keys can be copied at any hardware store without you ever knowing. Over a few seasons that adds up to real uncertainty about who can walk in.

A restricted key system or a keypad and smart lock setup solves this problem. Restricted keys cannot be copied without your authorisation, while keypads allow you to set codes for guests and change them after each stay. Either way, you stop access drifting out of your hands, which for a property you cannot keep an eye on is worth more than almost anything else.

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How to Secure a Holiday Home

Reset and Control Access

Start by changing the locks so old keys no longer work, then choose a system that keeps you in control, such as restricted keys or keypad entry, so you can manage guest access and reset it between stays.

Make It Look Lived In

An obviously empty house invites trouble. Use timer lights, keep the garden tidy, pause mail and deliveries and ask a neighbour or manager to keep an eye on the place between visits.

Secure Every Entry Point

Do not stop at the front door. Fit deadlocks, inspect window locks, secure side gates, sheds and the garage, and consider sensor lighting around the property to remove the cover an intruder relies on.

Holiday Home Security: Common Questions

A few of the questions Surf Coast holiday home and rental owners ask us most about keeping their property secure.

The easiest long-term answer is a keypad or smart lock, which lets you set a code for each guest and change it after they leave, so no physical keys change hands. If you prefer keys, a restricted system means that copies can only be cut with your authorisation. Both remove the worry of keys quietly piling up across many stays.

For a property with changing guests, they are well worth considering. You can issue and cancel codes remotely, avoid handing over keys, and check that the door is locked from afar. The main things to check are a physical key backup and good battery life, since you are not there to deal with a flat battery. We can recommend a model suited to a holiday rental.

Make it look occupied and remove obvious opportunities. Timer lights, a tidy garden, paused mail, and a neighbour or manager checking in all help create a welcoming environment. Pair that with deadlocks, secure windows and sensor lighting. An empty-looking house over a long period is one of the clearest invitations to an opportunist, so the goal is to never look unattended.

They can be, because they remain empty for long periods and an intruder knows they are unlikely to be disturbed. They also often have weaker key control than a primary home. That does not mean they are at constant risk, but it does mean the basics matter more here. Good locks, controlled access and a lived-in look go a long way.

Yes. Many holiday home owners do not live locally, which is part of why a system you can manage remotely makes sense. We are based right here in Torquay, so we can assess the property, fit the locks or keypads and recommend a setup you can control from wherever you are. Just get in touch and we will walk you through it.

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