Do you have abandoned buildings near your community? If so, do you know how they’re affecting your mental and physical health?

With over 19 million and rising abandoned properties in the U.S., these empty areas pose a problem to those that have to live and work near them.

How do these properties affect your health and what can you do about them? Let’s take a look at what impact vacant land has in your community and what you can do about it.

Physical Dangers of Abandoned Buildings

Let’s first look at the immediate danger these places post to public health. They’re dangerous to those that visit them but can even make you sick if you never step foot in them.

The first issue to consider is what physical safety hazards these houses and buildings have inside of them. Overgrown lawns can be full of dangerous scrap metals, rotting floors can give way if any children try to play inside, broken glass can cut you, and in a worst case scenario, they can fall over and crush you.

The second issue is that abandoned homes can be full of mold, lead, allergens, and more that seep out into the surrounding neighborhood. If you’ve got a property you need to sell, reach out to a place like www.DougHopkins.com and do the responsible thing instead of leaving it to deteriorate.

Harm to Mental Health and Community Well-Being

Dangerous abandoned lots and properties don’t just present immediate hazards to people who visit them or live near them. Studies have shown that they have an impact on mental health and community well-being as well.

Looking at abandoned properties makes residents feel depressed, anxious, and fearful of crime. Who wants to live in a place where homes sit empty and forgotten until they rot away?

Criminals and other dangerous elements might move into communities with empty properties and raise the crime rate in the neighborhood. Crime rates spike as much as 15% near empty and abandoned properties.

If a place looks run down or like it might need too much of an investment to improve, families won’t come to the community. People won’t want to move in and the cycle will continue.

What Can You do?

What can be done about vacant areas and abandoned buildings in your neighborhood? The obvious solution is to make sure these places sell as soon as possible to owners that are interested in the upkeep.

Another option is to gather your community to keep an eye on crime and vandalism. Work together to maintain the property and make it more attractive for new owners.

If push comes to shove, consider pooling resources to buy the house as a community, flip it, and then re-invest the money. You’ll create the kind of neighborhood you’re happy to live in and might even boost your property values.

It’s never too late to invest in your community. Transform your neighborhood and take action when lots or homes are abandoned.

You ever know — you might enjoy your new home flipping hobby. If you want to learn more real estate tips and tricks, keep reading our blog.