Is it a bird? Is it a plane?

No it's Dangertwig!

I have returned after a long break to find my homestead brutally ravaged, the culprit.. probably that new homestead that is 20 meters from our camp :p

Anyone have any tips to save rare items from being stolen when I'm on a break?

Yep, have an active sub.
Option 2 is get a friend with an active sub you can trust, and store it in his tribal area.

So real estate will be active, and you can rent rooms in another tribal area.

Welcome back Ryan,

You might also buy a cart for some nails and keep your stuff there atm. Or hide the baskets behind some group of boulders .

Yeah I figured out the cart thing, and I've found a few sneaky places to put my loot.

Thanks for the tips!

MrDDT has the right idea

Yes I may try out the real estate thing. I'm guessing only high ranking members of a tribe would be able to access a tent for example.

But, would it have to be built by me to keep it secure from low rank members?

It depends on the tribe. Like my tribe I have over 100 members, only 3 have access to tents.

Yes i guess it would, you'd have to trust the leaders to make the right choices while you're away too.