Want to instantly increase the re-sale value of your home or increase the rents you can get for a rental property? Stop drug activity! Read: Tenant Proof – Safeguarding your Philadelphia Rentals from Destruction
Just one person engaged in drug activity can reduce property values over the course of blocks. It creates unmarketable / undesirable traffic, it creates crime and vandalism. And if that person is engaged in sales, those de-valuing factors go way up with each customer.
What if you suspect the drug activity is stemming from one of your rental properties?
This uncomfortable situation is not limited to just Philadelphia individual property owners; it could happen to homeowner’s associations or to landlords with iron-clad screening processes. Tenant Screening Tips From A Property Manager
No homeowner wants his property to be known as a hot-bed of criminal activities. Especially not a rental landlord trying to increase his investment and get along with neighbors.
Let us first check out the tell-tale signs of drug activity within property. Some of them include:
- Excessive traffic around the property, often in indiscernible traffic patterns (e.g. enter, stop, leave).
- Visitors at odd hours. Again, if it's just short visits.
- Loitering around the outside of the property. One person running into the property, while another person waits in the car outside.
- Uptick of criminal activities within the neighborhood. Purchasers of drugs will often break into cars, steal bikes and other crimes.
If you notice any of the following activities, you must take action. Here are four ways to prevent drug related activities within your community.
- Use the Philly 311 system by phone or by app. Encourage neighbors to do the same.
- Inform the police of your suspicions and demand for more patrols in the neighborhood.
- Make sure the property is properly illuminated to prevent the shadows from being used for drug deals.
- Install security cameras in both hidden and plain sight.
- Run background checks on all your prospective clients. Call conferences are preferable because they can give you better insight compared to what is obtainable with background checks.
It is not always easy to get proof of a resident’s illegal activities. Make sure you take detailed pictures and notes, and gather other evidence just in case the matter ends up in court.
You don’t have to do it alone. If you need to, you can hire a property manager with the right experience and insights to make your community safe to live in.