Holiday Travel Checklist for Cleveland Renters: Leaving Your Rental for Thanksgiving and Winter Break

Late November through early January is when a lot of Cleveland-area renters leave home for a few days or a few weeks. It's also when Northeast Ohio's weather turns: cold snaps, lake-effect snow and the first real freezes of the season. A rental that sits empty and unwatched in that weather can come back to a frozen pipe, a pile of stolen packages or a parking ticket.

This checklist covers what to do in the week before you leave, on the day you go and when you get back. Most of it takes a few minutes. Your lease is still the final word on your specific home, so keep it handy as you go through the list.

One Week Before You Leave

Read the parts of your lease that matter for a trip

Look for anything about extended absences, required notice if you'll be gone more than a certain number of days, minimum heat settings in winter, guests staying in the unit while you're away, and who is responsible for snow and ice. If something isn't clear, ask your landlord now rather than from the airport. Our plain-English Ohio lease guide explains the common sections.

Tell your landlord or property manager

Even when the lease doesn't require it, a short message with your travel dates and a phone number where you can be reached is a good idea. If a pipe bursts or a smoke alarm goes off in the building, your landlord can reach you quickly. Ohio law lets a landlord enter a rental with reasonable notice (24 hours is presumed reasonable) and without notice in an emergency, under Ohio Revised Code 5321.04. Knowing you're away helps everyone handle an emergency faster.

Cleveland Comfort Housing residents: send us your dates through RentRedi or call (216) 490-0217, and let us know who (if anyone) will be checking on the home.

Report open maintenance items before you go

A dripping faucet, a furnace that short-cycles, a window that won't latch or a smoke alarm that chirps is easier to fix while you're home. Small problems can turn into big ones in an empty house. Submit requests early and include photos (our maintenance request documentation checklist shows what details help). Cleveland Comfort Housing residents can use our maintenance page.

Pay rent and set up anything due while you're away

If rent or a utility bill is due during your trip, pay it before you leave or set up the payment so it isn't missed. If money is tight because of holiday travel costs, see our guide to help paying rent in Cleveland and talk to your landlord before the due date, not after.

Hold your mail

The U.S. Postal Service's free Hold Mail service keeps all mail and packages for your address at your local Post Office for a minimum of 3 days and a maximum of 30 days. You can request it online up to 30 days ahead, or in person with PS Form 8076. For trips longer than 30 days, USPS points you to a forwarding service instead. Our mail and package delivery checklist has more on keeping deliveries safe.

Pause or reroute packages

USPS Hold Mail covers USPS deliveries only. Pause online orders, or send them to a locker, a store pickup counter or a trusted friend. A stack of boxes by the door is a sign the home is empty.

The Day You Leave

Leave the heat on (no lower than 55°F)

This is the most important step for a winter trip. The American Red Cross advises leaving the heat on, set no lower than 55°F, when you go away during cold weather. Don't shut the heat off to save money. A burst pipe costs far more than a few days of heating, and many leases require a minimum temperature. If your heating bill is the worry, our heating bill help guide covers HEAP, Winter Crisis and PIPP Plus.

Before you walk out:

• Open the cabinet doors under the kitchen and bathroom sinks so warm air reaches the pipes (move cleaners out of reach of children and pets first).
• Keep interior doors open so heat spreads through the home.
• Make sure windows and storm windows are fully closed and latched.
• If a cold snap is forecast and a faucet is on an exterior wall, ask your landlord whether they want it left at a slow drip.

Our Cleveland winter rental tips go deeper on frozen-pipe prevention and drafts.

Unplug, turn off and put away

• Unplug space heaters, holiday lights, curling irons, chargers and small kitchen appliances. Never leave a space heater running in an empty home (see our space heater safety guide).
• Blow out candles and make sure no stove burner or oven is on.
• Take out the trash and empty the fridge of anything that will spoil. A trash bag left inside for two weeks attracts pests.
• Run the dishwasher or washer only while you're home to watch it, not as you head out the door.

Check smoke and carbon monoxide alarms

Press the test button on each alarm before you leave. If one doesn't sound or is chirping, report it right away. Our smoke and carbon monoxide alarm checklist explains what to look for.

Lock up and make the home look lived in

• Lock every door and window, including basement and back doors.
• Use a plug-in timer on a lamp rather than leaving lights on around the clock.
• Leave a spare key only with someone you trust, never under a mat or planter. If your lease limits who can have a key, follow it.
• Hold off on posting trip photos publicly until you're back.

Think about your car and the snow rules

If you leave a car behind, park it where the lease or building allows and where it won't block plows. During a declared Snow Emergency Parking Ban, Cleveland can ticket and tow cars on streets with red and white "Snow Ban" signs, and Cleveland Heights has an overnight street parking ban and its own snow rules. See our Cleveland snow emergency guide and the Cleveland Heights parking, trash, leaf and snow rules guide. If your lease makes you responsible for clearing the walk or steps, arrange for someone to handle it while you're gone.

Know trash day

Cleveland trash and recycling carts shouldn't sit at the curb for days. Put them back before you leave, or ask a neighbor to roll them out and back in. Our Cleveland trash, recycling and bulk pickup guide covers the schedule basics.

While You're Away

• Keep your phone on and reachable in case your landlord or a neighbor needs to contact you.
• If someone is checking on the home, ask them to make sure the heat is running, look under sinks for leaks and bring in anything left at the door.
• If you get a report of a leak, no heat or a smoke alarm, call your landlord's emergency line right away. For fire, gas smells or anyone in danger, call 911 first. Our water leak response checklist covers the first steps.
• Check your renters insurance before the trip if you haven't recently. Some policies have rules about how long a home can sit unoccupied. Our renters insurance guide explains what typical policies cover.

When You Get Home

1. Walk through every room and look for leaks, especially under sinks, around the water heater and on ceilings below bathrooms.
2. Turn on each faucet. If only a trickle comes out on a cold day, a pipe may be frozen. Report it to your landlord right away and don't use an open flame to thaw it.
3. Make sure the furnace is running and the home is warming normally.
4. Pick up your held mail, or confirm that USPS delivered it on the end date you chose.
5. Report anything new to your landlord with photos and the date you noticed it.

Quick Holiday Travel Checklist

1. Read your lease for absence notice, minimum heat and snow duties.
2. Tell your landlord your travel dates and how to reach you.
3. Report open repairs before you leave.
4. Pay rent and bills due while you're gone.
5. Request USPS Hold Mail (3 to 30 days) and pause package deliveries.
6. Leave the heat on, no lower than 55°F, and open sink cabinets.
7. Unplug space heaters and holiday lights, take out the trash.
8. Test smoke and CO alarms.
9. Lock up, use a lamp timer, keep the spare key with someone you trust.
10. Plan for your car, snow and trash day.
11. Walk through for leaks and no-heat problems when you get back.

For more seasonal guides, from snow emergencies to power outages, visit our tenant resources hub. If you're looking for a new home in the Cleveland area, see our available rentals.