Evictions, while necessary, might be one of the most unpleasant pieces of property management. In a perfect world, all tenants would pay their rent on time and abide by the property rules and regulations, but unfortunately, that is not the reality we live in. In fact, evictions nationwide are up over 50% from the pre-pandemic averages.
All property managers know that evictions can be costly, time intensive and negatively affect the morale of both onsite employees and other tenants. However, it is an unfortunate reality that evictions are also often an impetus for violence and crime. There is no shortage of stories of property managers being assaulted after serving an eviction notice, whether it is this landlord stabbed in Phelan, or this man who threatened employees with a gun after being served an eviction notice in Henderson. And those are just from the past few weeks.
In addition to violent crime against onsite staff, eviction notices have also been shown to increase crime and property damage onsite. A report from 2022 found that for every 10% increase in evictions, there was a corresponding 5.5% increase in forcible entry robberies and 8.5% increase in vehicle theft.
Providing onsite staff with a security device can help mitigate situations that can arise due to eviction related tension. Apartment Guardian’s fully mobile, 4G powered panic button reached 911 8 times faster than a traditional cell phone. These are valuable seconds in a potentially violent encounter with a recent evictee. And unlike other security options, you have the choice to program the device to be silent, which allows onsite staff to reach authorities without potentially escalating the situation.
Making sure onsite staff and property are protected as much as possible can help to lower some of the burdens associated with the unpleasant reality that are evictions. If you would like more information about how to get your property set with Apartment Guardian mobile panic buttons, reach out to us anytime at kate@apartmentguardian.com or by filling out our contact form.