Safeguard’s Good Neighbor Door Hanger Initiative
Safeguard?s Good Neighbor Door Hanger initiative proves successful in proactively addressing vacant blight issues
Safeguard Properties has led the servicing industries efforts in proactively partnering with cities and municipalities in dealing with issues that lead to vacant blight. Servicers and local governments are partners in fighting blight, maintaining safe neighborhoods, and ensuring properties are maintained and do not cause a blight on neighborhoods.
As announced in the 1st quarter of 2009, Safeguard initiated a Good Neighbor Door Hanger Initiative whereby a door hanger is left at properties adjacent to vacant and secured properties.? The Door Hanger provided an 800 number enabling the neighbor to contact Safeguard 24/7 if they see any questionable activity or maintenance issue that needs to be addressed.
The Initiative, currently being utilized nationwide for over a year, has been extremely successful.? Since full implementation of the initiative, Safeguard has been receiving over 1,200 calls per day from neighbors who have utilized the call in number to proactively make contact.? The majority of these calls are regarding the property status or reporting questionable activity at the property.at the subject property.? This initiative has resulted in timely remediation of issues that, if left unaddressed, would have resulted in the property being vandalized or a call to code enforcement officials issuing citations. This proactive communication has resulted in a partnership between the community and the Industry in addition to ensuring that the servicer?s collateral interest in the property is maintained.
The correlation between vacant properties and criminal activity has been well documented in 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 servicer?s collateral in their assets and wreaks havoc on the communities where the properties exist.
Safeguard will continue to utilize the Good Neighbor Door Hanger initiative to assist communities and the Industry as a whole to combat vacant blight through proactive collaboration with the community.
About Safeguard
Safeguard Properties is the largest privately held field services company in the country. Located in Cleveland, Ohio 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 700 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.
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