Illinois crime free housing program improves tenant screening, decision-making

There are currently 363 landlords licensed by the city of Collinsville, Illinois, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch. And all of them are required to participate in a nearly $5,000 Crime-Free Housing Program enacted to reduce crime in the area. The news source notes in a separate article that the program, started in October 2010, assists owners and property managers in identifying criminal activity at their rental properties. Landlords are required to participate in a five-hour training session where they receive assistance in how to select more desirable renters via tenant background screening services, among other things. Prior to the initiative, police would respond to disturbance calls at rental units and typically arrest someone who may not have been the actual tenant. However, police now deal specifically with the offender, and the landlord threatens eviction if criminal parties return to the property. Over the past year, reports of criminal activity have decreased by 33 percent - from 2,735 to 1,827 - proving the program's effectiveness.