The clock most people don't know is running
A house that goes quiet doesn't come with a list. The insurance vacancy clause is the one item that turns an inconvenience into a five-figure problem if it's missed, and it's rarely mentioned to a grieving family by anyone — not the funeral home, not the bank, not a well-meaning neighbour.
What has a real deadline, and what doesn't
Insurance notification, heat-or-drain the plumbing before a freeze, and mail redirection all have clocks attached. Deciding what happens to the house itself does not — that's a decision, not a deadline, and it's fine to take time on it once the first three are handled.
Where this checklist came from
We built The Empty House Checklist after watching Chatham-Kent families lose money to exactly this gap — not from a bad decision, just from nobody telling them the clock existed. It's free, it's one page, and using it doesn't commit you to anything, including talking to us.