The best thing about selling my Chicago condo was never having to do a pre-departure checklist again.
For three winters before I committed to van life full-time, I did the snowbird thing the hard way — spending the weeks before each departure in a mounting panic about whether I’d forgotten something, whether the pipes would freeze, whether the mail was handled, whether my neighbor had my number if something went wrong. Then I’d arrive in Arizona and spend the first week still mentally back in Chicago instead of present in the desert.
The condo was actually the easy version of this problem. A well-run condo association handles exterior maintenance, the building has heat, and my pre-departure routine eventually got down to four things: mail forwarding, thermostat set, a neighbor with a key, and lock the door. A house is a fundamentally different proposition — more systems, more exposure, more responsibility, more things that can go wrong while you’re 1,800 miles away watching a sunset over the Sonoran Desert.
This checklist is for the snowbird who owns or rents a house, condo, or apartment and is leaving for a season — whether you’re heading to boondock on BLM land outside Quartzsite or plugging into a full-hookup resort in South Florida. The destination doesn’t change what you leave behind.
I no longer have a home base to prep. But I remember exactly what it took, and I’ve talked to enough snowbirds at desert campfires to know what the ones who leave smoothly do differently from the ones who get the panicked 2am call from a neighbor.
In This Article:
- How far in advance to start — and why most people start too late
- The mail and financial checklist
- The home security checklist
- The utilities and systems checklist
- The people checklist — who needs to know you’re gone and what they need
- The vehicle and home exterior checklist
- The health and legal checklist
- The RV or van departure checklist
- What to do the night before you leave
- The one thing most snowbirds forget that causes the most problems
How Far in Advance to Start
Six weeks before departure is not too early. Most people start two weeks out and spend the final week stressed.
The reason to start six weeks out isn’t that any single task takes that long — it’s that certain tasks reveal other tasks. Setting up mail forwarding reminds you that three services still have your home address on file. Calling your insurance company reminds you to check your home insurance vacancy clauses. Scheduling the HVAC service call reminds you the filters haven’t been changed in four months.
Give yourself runway and the pre-departure period is calm and organized. Start two weeks out and it becomes a sprint.
The Mail and Financial Checklist
Mail is the foundation of the whole operation. Get this wrong and you’re chasing lost bills, missed statements, and expired cards from a campground parking lot.
Mail forwarding:
- Set up USPS mail forwarding from your home address to a mail forwarding service — not directly to your destination address if that changes. A mail forwarding service like Traveling Mailbox, Anytime Mailbox, PostScan Mail, or Earth Class Mail receives your physical mail, scans the envelope, and lets you view it online. You decide what to open and read digitally, what to shred, and what to forward to wherever you are. This was my entire mail system when I had the condo and it worked perfectly. About $15-25 per month and worth every dollar.
- If you’re not using a forwarding service and instead forwarding directly to a fixed seasonal address, USPS forward takes 7-10 business days to activate. Set it up a minimum of two weeks before you leave.
- Notify any senders who won’t comply with USPS forwarding — some first-class mail forwards, some doesn’t. Specifically contact your bank, credit card companies, investment accounts, IRS (if you have anything pending), insurance companies, and any subscription services.
Go paperless on everything you haven’t already converted. Your departure is the forcing function to finally eliminate paper statements from your life. Log into every financial account you have and switch to electronic statements before you leave. Check this off one account at a time — it takes an afternoon and saves months of mail forwarding headaches.
Bills and autopay:
- Audit every regular bill and confirm autopay is active for all of them. Specifically: mortgage or rent, HOA fees, utilities you’re keeping on, insurance, subscriptions, car insurance if a vehicle is staying behind, storage unit if applicable.
- Set calendar reminders for any annual bills that might come due while you’re away — property taxes, insurance renewals, vehicle registration. These don’t always arrive as obvious invoices and missing them has real consequences.
- Increase your credit card limits if you’re going to be making large purchases on the road — campground fees, repairs, fuel — and you want buffer. Do this before you go rather than while traveling.
Banking:
- Notify your bank of your travel plans and states you’ll be in. A fraud alert on your card when you’re 1,800 miles from home is an inconvenience you don’t need.
- Make sure you have at least two payment methods — different bank cards or one card and one backup — in case one gets compromised.
- Know your bank’s fee structure for out-of-network ATMs if you use cash. Some accounts reimburse ATM fees nationally, which becomes valuable when you’re in a rural campground town.
The Home Security Checklist
An empty house for six months is a security consideration that most snowbirds underestimate.
Visual deterrence:
- Put at least two interior lights on timers — one in the front of the house visible from the street, one in a rear room. Random timers that vary the on/off schedule are more convincing than consistent patterns. Smart plugs you can control remotely are even better.
- Stop all deliveries — packages accumulating on a porch are the clearest signal that nobody’s home. Cancel or pause Amazon Subscribe & Save, meal kits, wine subscriptions, and any other regular deliveries. Your mail forwarding handles the mail but packages need separate attention.
- If you get a newspaper, cancel the subscription or arrange with a neighbor to collect it. A week of newspapers on a front porch is an advertisement.
- Have someone collect any flyers, door hangers, or other solicitations that accumulate at the door. Your trusted neighbor or property manager handles this.
Actual security:
- Change your locks or rekey if you have any uncertainty about who has keys to your home. This is the right time to do it — before six months away.
- Ensure every entry point has a working lock. Check not just the front door but side doors, garage entry doors, basement entries, and any slider locks.
- If you have a security system, confirm your monitoring subscription is active and that the monitoring company has current emergency contact information including your travel phone number. Walk the system and verify every sensor is functional before you leave.
- If you don’t have a security system and you’re leaving for six months, this is the time to get one. Even a basic system with monitoring runs $20-30 per month and the peace of mind on the road is worth it.
- Exterior cameras — Ring, Nest, Arlo — give you the ability to check on your home remotely and receive alerts if motion is detected. Install them before you go and confirm the app is working on your phone.
- Consider a lockbox outside your home with a spare key for your trusted contact. A lockbox is more secure than leaving a key with a neighbor and easier for everyone if they need access.
Inside:
- Inventory and photograph your valuables. Store the photos in the cloud, not on your home computer. If you need to make an insurance claim from Arizona, you need that documentation accessible remotely.
- Put truly irreplaceable items — specific jewelry, documents, sentimental items — in a safe deposit box or fireproof safe if you don’t already use one.
The Utilities and Systems Checklist
This section is where house owners have substantially more to manage than condo owners. Condos share building systems — a house owns them all.
Thermostat:
- Don’t turn the heat completely off in a cold-climate home. Set it to 55°F minimum to prevent pipe freezing. This applies even in climates that don’t typically freeze — an unusual cold snap in Atlanta or Nashville can freeze pipes in a house with the heat off.
- Smart thermostats let you monitor and adjust temperature remotely. If you’re leaving during winter or returning during summer heat, the ability to pre-condition the house before you arrive is genuinely useful.
Water:
- Shut off the main water supply to the house. This is the single most important thing you can do to prevent a catastrophic water damage event while you’re away. A burst pipe, a failed supply line under a toilet, a refrigerator ice maker line that splits — any of these can cause tens of thousands of dollars in damage over six months if the water is on. Turn it off at the main shutoff.
- After shutting off the main, open a faucet on the lowest floor to relieve pressure from the lines.
- Pour a cup of RV antifreeze — not automotive antifreeze, RV antifreeze — into every drain: sinks, showers, tubs, floor drains. The water in P-traps will evaporate over six months leaving the drain open to sewer gases. RV antifreeze prevents evaporation and keeps the traps sealed. This is the step most people skip and then wonder why their house smells wrong when they return.
- Disconnect the supply line to your icemaker and washing machine. These flexible lines are common failure points.
- If you have a well, follow your specific well system’s winterization procedure.
Electrical:
- Unplug everything you don’t need to leave on. Televisions, computers, small appliances, entertainment systems, and anything with a standby power draw can be unplugged. This reduces phantom load and eliminates fire risk from appliances left on standby.
- Exceptions: refrigerator if you’re leaving food or want it running, security cameras, smart thermostat, and any sump pump if applicable.
- Consider whether to leave the refrigerator running or empty and unplug it. If you’re leaving it on, it needs to be running properly before you leave. If you’re unplugging it, empty it completely, clean it, and leave the doors propped slightly open to prevent mold.
- Check your circuit breaker panel. Know where it is and confirm you can communicate its location to your emergency contact if needed.
HVAC:
- Change the air filter before you leave. A dirty filter running through winter while you’re away is a fire risk.
- Have your HVAC serviced before a long absence if it’s due — if it’s going to fail, better to discover it now than to come home to a system that’s been struggling for months.
- Clean gutters before a winter departure. Clogged gutters cause ice dams and water infiltration that causes structural damage.
Sump pump:
- If you have a sump pump, test it before you leave. Pour water into the sump pit and confirm the float switch activates the pump. A failed sump pump during spring rains while you’re in Florida is a full basement flooding event.
- Consider a water alarm in the sump pit that sends a notification to your phone if water reaches a certain level.
The People Checklist
This is the infrastructure that actually protects you while you’re away. Systems fail. Neighbors notice.
Your trusted local contact:
- Identify one person — neighbor, family member, friend — who has your key, your phone number, and permission to enter if needed. This isn’t someone you call to check in with — this is the person the monitoring company calls if an alarm triggers, the person who notices if something looks wrong, the person who can meet a repair person if you need remote work done.
- Brief them specifically: here’s where the main water shutoff is, here’s the thermostat, here’s the security panel code, here’s my phone number and a backup contact. Write this down for them rather than expecting them to remember a verbal briefing.
- Be specific about what they should do in different scenarios. “If you see water coming under the front door, shut off the water here and call me immediately” is more useful than “just let me know if anything looks off.”
Property manager:
- If you have an HOA, notify them of your extended absence and provide an emergency contact. Some HOAs have specific requirements for extended-vacancy properties.
- If your neighborhood has a non-emergency police line that offers vacation watch programs, register with them. It’s free and adds another set of eyes.
Service providers:
- Notify anyone who regularly services your property — lawn care, pool service, snow removal — that you’ll be absent and confirm they’ll continue service on their normal schedule with payment handled through autopay.
- If you don’t have a snow removal service and you’re in a winter climate, arrange one before you leave. A house with an unshoveled walk and driveway for six months is both a safety hazard and a signal.
Notify your insurance company:
- Many homeowner’s insurance policies have vacancy clauses — coverage limitations that kick in after a property has been unoccupied for 30, 60, or 90 days depending on the policy. Call your insurance company, explain your plans, and ask specifically about vacancy provisions and whether you need a rider or endorsement for an extended absence. This call takes 15 minutes and could save you a denied claim if something goes wrong.
The Vehicle and Home Exterior Checklist
If a vehicle is staying behind:
- Have someone move it periodically — even once a month — to prevent flat spots on tires and keep it visible as an occupied property signal.
- Remove the negative battery terminal to eliminate drain or consider a trickle charger or battery tender to maintain the battery through a long absence. A dead battery after six months is a minor inconvenience. A car that won’t start when you return after 1,800 miles is more annoying.
- Make sure insurance and registration don’t lapse while you’re away. Set calendar reminders.
Home exterior:
- Walk the perimeter of your home before you leave. Check for any maintenance issues that will worsen over six months — loose gutters, damaged flashing, caulking around windows that’s failing. Address anything that will cause water infiltration if left through a season of weather.
- Store or secure anything in the yard that can blow away or be damaged — patio furniture, planters, decorations. Bring them inside or use tie-downs appropriate for your climate.
The Health and Legal Checklist
These are the items most snowbirds forget and occasionally regret.
Medical:
- Get enough prescription medication refills to cover your entire trip plus a buffer month. Most insurance companies allow a 90-day supply. If you need more than 90 days worth, talk to your doctor before you leave about extended supply options. Running out of a critical prescription in a rural Arizona boondocking area or remote Florida campground is genuinely stressful.
- Carry a written list of all medications with dosages, your doctor’s contact information, and your insurance card. Keep a copy separate from your wallet.
- Know the nearest urgent care and emergency room to your destination before you arrive. Download and use your health insurance company’s provider finder app.
- If you have a dentist appointment you’ve been putting off, go before you leave. Emergency dental in an unfamiliar city is expensive and unpleasant.
Legal and documents:
- Make sure your will and any advance directives are current and accessible to the right people. If something happens while you’re on the road, the people who need these documents should know where they are.
- Carry copies of important documents — passport, insurance cards, vehicle registrations, RV registration — digitally in a secure cloud location accessible from your phone.
- If you’re crossing into Mexico for any portion of the trip, verify your passport is current and research your vehicle insurance requirements — US auto insurance typically doesn’t cover Mexico.
The RV or Van Departure Checklist
Once the house is handled, the rig needs its own pre-season attention. Whether you’re driving a Class A, a fifth wheel tow rig, or a van conversion, the same categories apply.
Mechanical:
- Oil change and fluid check if you’re within 2,000 miles of your next interval — better to do it now than in an unfamiliar town 500 miles in.
- Tire pressure and tire condition. Sidewall cracking, tread depth, age of tires. A blowout at highway speed is preventable. Tires older than 5-6 years should be evaluated regardless of tread depth — rubber degrades with age.
- Brake inspection. If you haven’t had a brake inspection in the past year and you’re about to tow a heavy rig or drive across the country, do it now.
- Battery condition — both chassis battery and house batteries. A chassis battery that starts the rig fine on a cool Chicago morning may not start it reliably after a week in South Florida heat if it’s marginal.
Systems:
- Test the water heater, furnace, and any air conditioning before you leave — not when you arrive at your first campsite after dark.
- Test all roof seals and slide seals for leaks. Run water over the roof and watch for any interior drips. Fix anything now rather than discovering it during a desert rainstorm.
- Sanitize the fresh water tank if the rig has been sitting. Drain, fill with a bleach solution (1/4 cup per 15 gallons), run through all faucets, let sit two hours, flush completely.
- Test every appliance: stove burners, oven, microwave, refrigerator in both 12V and propane modes, slide operation, awning operation, leveling jacks.
Supplies:
- Stock the rig with your first week’s worth of supplies before you leave home. Arriving at a destination at 6pm after a long drive day and needing to immediately find a grocery store is avoidable.
- First aid kit restocked and current. Prescriptions on board.
- Tools appropriate for your rig’s needs — tire pressure gauge, basic hand tools, electrical connectors, spare fuses, duct tape, and whatever rig-specific items your experience has taught you to carry.
The Night Before You Leave
The night before departure is not the time to start any new task. Everything on the checklist should be done. The night before is for one thing: a final walkthrough.
Walk through every room. Open every cabinet. Check the thermostat setting. Confirm the main water is off. Confirm the security system is armed. Confirm the timers are set. Confirm your contact person has your number.
Then lock the door and don’t second-guess yourself.
The snowbirds who enjoy the first week of their season are the ones who trust their preparation. The ones who spend it mentally back at home are the ones who skipped steps.
The One Thing Most Snowbirds Forget
Water. Specifically, the main water shutoff.
I’ve heard more campfire stories about burst pipes, failed supply lines, and refrigerator water line leaks than any other home disaster. Every single one of them would have been prevented — or dramatically reduced in damage — by shutting off the main water supply before leaving.
A burst pipe with the water on for six months can total a house. A burst pipe with the water off is a repair, not a catastrophe.
Shut the water off. It’s one valve. It’s the most important thing on this entire list.
I didn’t have to worry about it in my Chicago condo — the building handled water. Now I don’t have to worry about it in the van — there’s no house to leave behind.
But if you do have a house? That valve is your most important pre-departure task. Everything else is details.
Cynthia Jackson lives full-time in a self-converted Ram ProMaster and covers van life, motorhomes, and the full-time RV lifestyle at RV Journal.
