The place might sit empty for awhile.
I am in favor of this idea, because it’s my farmhouse when I’m there, several times a year, but not for leisure purposes: I need a homebase to work hard out of, to be able to get up at the crack of dawn and be outside by 7 am, work until dark and stop to make dinner only after projects are buttoned up for the night.
I do not want to camp out at some hotel room 12 miles away and have to wait until my late-sleeping travel partner gets rolling so we can drive to the farm, starting my workday before 10 am if I’m really lucky and with nowhere to take a break and prepare a meal to eat, while some stranger lives in our house. Silly, impossible idea, that. I tried the sock on several times and it never fit.
(This is actually my mental image of how I approach the difficult task of choosing between possible scenarios like this, I see it like trying on a sock. Pulled it on and the damned thing was too tight, and scratchy, and would have caused me unending distress. No kidding.)
So, a shift in project plans for the September working visit, from installing the wood stove to:
1) Building good sturdy gates across both driveways (one to the shop, one to the house, separated by the creek).
2) Fencing the road boundary between and past the gates to prevent access to the buildings.
3) Having a monitored alarm system installed in house and shop (I would want this when I move there by myself anyway, working up on the hill all day, out of earshot of the house by the road).
4) Installing an inexpensive x10 lighting control system inside house, to turn lights and radio on and off, simulating occupancy.
5) Installing solar-powered security lighting on house side of creek, and in back of shop.
6) Putting deadbolts on all doors.
I contacted the realtor that sold us the place, who’s been working in the area for several decades and lives just a few miles down the road – wanted to know what her experience was with folks renting places out vs. leaving them buttoned up and whether there was any such thing as property management in the area. She related a couple of horror stories about clients who ended up having to sell a secondary residence after getting tromped on by unsavory renters who trashed the place and were difficult to evict; just too few good people needing a place to live that will take care of it like you’d want them to.
Her recommendation was to implement the above security measures and she even offered to make frequent checks on our place as she drives by there weekly, and call us if anything appeared amiss.
It’s a risk I think I’ll take.
There is a possibility that my sister in Colorado will move out to the farm and caretake the place, after the next ski season is over. A fortuitous opportunity for her to change location and jobs and get something of a fresh start. But nothing etched in stone yet, just a possibility. So we’ll proceed with the security measures, plan for the worst and hope for the best.
Thistledog's Farm 
Hmmmmmm ….. are you sure you aren’t projecting urban/suburban experiences? My boss bought a retirement house near Haysville, NC and his best friend, who owns a security/alarm company, built a house in the area. It has more lights than a small city, elaborate alarm systems, and expensive locks. My boss’s house has only motion-activated lights, some low-powered wall-socket lights inside the house and regular locks. He let his yard grow up for three months – the grass/weeds were three feet tall. No break-ins. We were speculating today about how long it will take before someone takes a high-powered rifle and shoots out his friend’s lights, which are on every night, all night long. His friend’s wife hates everything about the country – terrified of bears, night noises, everything. We both wonder why they built a house there.
What do Bobby and Alene have to say about the neighbors and the area? Is it possible that the Realtor is telling tales to get your business? Maybe I’m just lucky with my neighbors, but I really wonder if you aren’t making mountains out of the proverbial mole-hill. Sure, there are bad people everywhere, but my experience with country folk is that they are very respectful of property rights and don’t trespass. Have you introduced yourself to the neighbors and explained something of your plans? Reach out – if you get bit, you’ll know to take precautions. But I’d be careful about making assumptions before you get to know the folks in the area.
Like turtles and their shells, we carry our assumptions with us wherever we go.
I’ll get down off my soapbox, now …..
Nope, these are not SoCal suburbia assumptions transplanted to Kentucky – as my drill instructors at Fort Jackson would say, this “is what it is.”
You might have misread my precautionary bent. I appreciate your intent, but I’m absolutely not making mountains out of molehills in this case. Sure, it’s rural, and country, and as my neighbor/real estate agent says, she doesn’t lock her doors and feels quite secure about that. In fact her conclusion is, the place will be fine left unoccuped. Our proposed “security measures” are mostly to allay my husband’s concerns about leaving the property unoccupied which might attract neighborhood ne’r-do-wells. And there are those.
Maybe a large percentage of the people who would drive by our property would be as you describe; respectful country folk who would never violate a neighbor’s property rights much less take advantage of an unoccupied small house and shop building. But the state road in front is a main access to Green Lake Reservoir, and draws visitors from near and far. The economy is depressed. Lots of people out of work, and scraping by, and like the young couple living across the way, mostly unemployed and not necessarily of scrupulous background or possessing the morals and values you and I would.
Interestingly enough, Kentucky ranks highest in the nation for prescription drug abuse-related deaths. They have called it an epidemic. Meth-amphetamine use is also inordinately high. And it’s not just the inner city environs of Louisville or Lexington – we see deadbeat types shuffling down the streets of li’l ole’ Campbellsville. So no, I don’t think my precautions are unfounded.
As for Bobby and Alene, they were categorically isolated from all their neighbors. Knew them but distrusted them. Actually engaged in a feud with the adjacent landowner to the West and North, over property line disputes arising from our survey when we bought the place. No love lost there, and certainly no reciprocal watchfulness. Their loss – I think I can build a strong relationship with Mr. Berry and his kin, to my advantage, and have already taken steps in that direction.
But I would say overall our first-hand observation of the complete lack of “community” in the immediate area completely debunks the commonly-held assumption of a tight-knit, trustworthy rural enclave. Perhaps it is the proximity to the well-traveled public road. I’ll not light up the place like a prison yard, for sure, but basic physical barriers and the appearance of an ownership presence will go a long way to prevent opportunistic vandalism. Ya’ gotta do what feels right, and this is.
Ah, well, the fact that you have a state road that is the main access to Green Lake Reservoir abutting your property changes the equation dramatically. I thought the property was tucked back in a more isolated area. And the fact that Bobby and Alene didn’t get along with the neighbors surely complicates the situation. Floyd County has a large number of methamphetamine users and alcohol abusers, too – that seems to go with the territory most anywhere in the United States these days. So, yes, your precautions are well-founded. I was not aware of the issues that led you to your decision. Thank you for bringing them to light. I do hope that you can build a strong relationship with your neighbors – watchfulness is most helpful!
I put up a cable with a “no trespassing” sign on it across my driveway. Anyone can knock the posts down, but my intent was to draw a line in the sand and keep honest people honest. I also didn’t want teen-agers partying at the end of the driveway and leaving beer bottles and such there. Seems to have worked, so far, though I’m sure my neighbor across the street helps out a lot. Since I don’t have anything on the property yet, that helps, too. We’ll see how things develop. It will be an interesting journey!