The correlation between vacant properties and criminal activity has recently become a focal point of the mortgage servicing industry and communities nationwide.  As foreclosures and vacancies mount, the nation has seen a material increase in the number of copper pipe thefts, arsons and related crimes at these vacant properties.  This ripple effect drastically reduces the servicers collateral in their assets and wreaks havoc on the communities where the properties exist.

The City of Cleveland has seen a dramatic increase in the number of foreclosures and as one would expect, a marked increase in the aforementioned property crimes.  Acting proactively, Safeguard Properties Inc., in collaboration with the Cleveland Municipal Housing Court and Code Enforcement Division compiled a list of high vandalism zip codes within City limits. Housing Court Judge Raymond Pianka and his staff were extremely cooperative in identifying and provided the following list of zip codes that have experienced an increase in reported vandalism crimes.

44102-44105, 44108, 44110, 44114, 44115, 44127

To further bolster the identification of these at risk areas, the Case Western Reserve University's Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Center on Urban Poverty and Community Development has created a comprehensive database that tracks crimes in relation to the zip codes where they occurred.  The NEOCANDO (Northeast Ohio Community and Neighborhood Data for Organizing) system was created as a means to capture and report on social and economic data for the ultimate purpose of tracking population trends, poverty, employment, educational attainment, housing and crime.  The following links provide a summary of information compiled from Cleveland Police Department crime data by zip codes for calendar year 2006.

2006 Part 1 Crimes - Part I Crimes include violent crimes (homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assaults) and property crimes (burglary, larceny-theft, auto theft and arson).

2006 Violent Crimes - Violent Crimes include four offenses: homicide, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault.

2006 Property Crimes - Property Crimes include the offenses of burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. The offenses involve the taking of money or property, with no force or threat of force against the victims.

Currently, the Cleveland Municipal Housing Court does not anticipate legislating additional securing requirements to combat these property crimes.  However, Safeguard recommends that extra measures (such as boarding broken windows as opposed to re-glazing) be taken in the aforementioned zip codes to minimize opportunity for vandalism.

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Safeguard Properties is the largest privately held field services company in the country. Located in Cleveland, OH  and founded in 1990 by Robert Klein, Safeguard has grown from a regional preservation company with a few employees and a handful of contractors performing services in the Midwest, to a national company with over 425 employees.  Safeguard is supported by a nationwide network of subcontractors able to perform any requested superintendence, preservation, and maintenance functions, as well as numerous ancillary services in the U.S., the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.