Most property damage compounds.
A small leak found on day three is a flooring repair. The same leak found on day thirty is a six-figure remediation. Florida's heat, humidity, and afternoon storms are hard on an empty house, and an empty house has no one to notice when something begins to go wrong.
Home watch is the discipline of noticing on a schedule. We walk the property on a documented cadence — weekly for most homes — with a checklist built for the house, not a generic one. Every visit is photographed and timestamped, and the report is in your portal within twenty-four hours. You see what we saw, from wherever you are.
Home watch is one of seven service lines; the full ledger is here. Many owners pair it with hurricane preparation — the two disciplines share a premise: the house is looked after whether or not you are in it.
What a weekly visit covers.
The checklist is tailored to each property during the initial walk-through — a house with a generator, a pool, and a wine room is checked differently from one without. The standing structure of a visit:
Exterior
- Roof line, gutters, and soffits scanned for damage or displacement
- Full perimeter walk: windows, doors, screens, signs of entry or storm damage
- Landscape, pool deck, and irrigation checked and noted
- Mail, packages, and deliveries collected or forwarded
Interior
- Every room, every floor — ceilings, walls, and floors read for water intrusion
- Climate and humidity verified holding at set points
- Water run at fixtures; supply lines and visible plumbing inspected
- Pest indicators checked throughout
- Alarm system, water main, generator, and sump pumps tested
- Vehicles started and exercised, where requested
The report
- Photo report — timestamped, archived — posted to your owner portal within 24 hours of the visit
- Anything urgent reported the same day, by phone, with a recommendation
Owners who are often elsewhere.
- Seasonal residents — the house holds its standard through the months you are north
- Absentee owners and frequent travelers — one local contact, accountable to you, on a schedule
- Second homes — looked after between stays, ready when you arrive
- Estates between occupants — documented condition through a sale, a probate period, or a renovation gap
Within ninety minutes, always.
We do not take on properties we cannot reach in person, on short notice, when something matters. Nothing beyond the corridor.
Home watch, plainly answered.
What is home watch?
A scheduled, documented inspection of an unoccupied or seasonally occupied home, performed by someone accountable to the owner. It exists because most property damage compounds — the earlier a problem is found, the smaller it stays. Each of our visits is photographed, timestamped, and reported within twenty-four hours.
How often should a vacant home be checked in Florida?
For most Northeast Florida homes we recommend weekly, and that is the cadence we run as standard. Heat, humidity, and afternoon storms punish an empty house. Some insurance policies also expect regular documented checks of an unoccupied property; your carrier can confirm what yours requires.
What does a home watch visit include?
A full exterior and interior walk: roof line, gutters, perimeter, landscape, pool deck, and irrigation outside; every room and floor inside, read for water intrusion and pest indicators. Climate and humidity verified at set points, water run at fixtures, and the alarm, water main, generator, and sump pumps tested. Mail and packages handled, storm damage checked after weather, vehicles started where requested. The photo report posts within twenty-four hours.
How much does home watch cost?
Pricing is structured per property and scoped after a walk-through — it depends on the size of the home, its systems, and the visit cadence your travel calls for. We do not publish rates. An initial consultation results in a written proposal, whether or not we end up working together.
What's the difference between home watch and property management?
Property management usually means managing a rental — tenants, rent, leases. Home watch is for a home you keep for your own use: scheduled inspections, documentation, and a local point of contact while you are elsewhere. We provide home watch as part of a broader private home management engagement, alongside maintenance, projects, storm preparation, and concierge functions.
Do you work with my existing vendors?
Yes. If you have a pool service, landscaper, or alarm company you trust, we coordinate and supervise them rather than replace them. Where you need vendors, we bring the network built over six years of Live Oak Maintenance. Either way, no vendor markup — invoices are passed to you at cost.
What happens if you find a problem?
You hear about it the same day, with photographs and a recommendation. Anything urgent — active water, a failed climate system, a security concern — is stabilized first and reported immediately. Repairs proceed only on your instruction, by our own technicians or a vetted vendor, invoiced at cost.
Are you insured?
Yes. We operate under Live Oak Maintenance, in business since 2020, and carry appropriate coverage for the work we perform. Certificates and coverage details are provided during the engagement process, before any work begins.
The house deserves a set of eyes.
Pricing is by inquiry — structured around the property, its systems, and the cadence of your travel. A consultation takes roughly forty-five minutes and results in a written proposal either way.
Or call (904) 346-4401.