The City of Syracuse’s latest audit, “Following the Fire: Analysis of 2024 Vacant Structure Fires,” (link) sheds important light on the connection between vacant properties and public safety. According to the report:

These are serious findings, but they’re also familiar ones.

This report follows on the heels of a January 2025 audit that revealed similarly low compliance with the city’s rental registry. In that case, (link) only a fraction of rental properties were properly registered—signaling a larger pattern of underperformance in property registration programs.

However there is one clear distinction between the two.

Finding #10 in the recent fire audit highlights the low percentage of vacant properties that were registered. But the report doesn’t distinguish between different types of vacant properties.
Severely deteriorated properties, especially those with a history of ignoring property maintenance violations, are the least likely to register. Lumping these into the same compliance rate as more stable properties paints an unfairly bleak picture.

To get an accurate sense of registry effectiveness, municipalities should isolate long-term noncompliant properties from the broader pool.

Even if these numbers were adjusted correctly, there is a better approach, rather than placing more burden on already overextended staff, Syracuse should consider what many other communities have already done: outsourcing the administration of its property registries.

At MuniReg, we partner with municipalities across the country to:

This isn’t a criticism of existing personnel, it’s a strategic decision to align resources where they’re most effective. We operate on a performance-based model, meaning we only succeed when cities do.

The Following the Fire audit and the earlier rental registry report both point to the same conclusion: current systems are falling short.

But with the right perspective, and the right partners, this challenge can become an opportunity. An opportunity to rethink compliance. An opportunity to protect neighborhoods. An opportunity to maximize limited city resources.

If you are ready to get more out of its registration programs, we’re ready to help.

Senator Jim Banks (R-Ind.) introduced the Revitalizing Empty Structures Into Desirable Environments (RESIDE) Act with Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.). This bill would set aside funding within the Home Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) starting in 2026 for a new pilot program to help communities turn abandoned or run-down buildings, like warehouses, factories, hotels, strip malls, and other unused spaces, into new housing.

Key Provisions of the Revitalizing Empty Structures Into Desirable Environments Act.

To view the Press Release from Senator Jim Banks along with a link to the full text of the proposed legislation, please click here

In a bold move to tackle urban decay, Watertown, NY, is exploring a novel approach to combat blight: raffling off city-owned homes. Targeting mid‑score houses (rated between 40–70 on their condition scale), renovating one, then selling $20 raffle tickets, culminating in a chance for a lucky winner to own a fully updated home. The proceeds would help fund further demolitions or future raffles. The plan, still undergoing legal review, is drawing attention as a fresh, community‑powered strategy to breathe new life into neglected neighborhoods.

For more information, please click here

 

 

In the face of rising crime and ongoing police staffing shortages, a new study published in the Journal of Criminal Justice highlights the potential of code enforcement as a cost-effective crime prevention tool. Authored by faculty from the University of South Carolina and a representative of the Columbia SC police department, the study evaluated a targeted strategy that used code enforcement to address vacant lots, abandoned buildings, and overgrown properties. While the approach did not significantly reduce shootings or violent crime, it led to meaningful declines in property crime—demonstrating the promise of low-contact, non-traditional policing strategies to improve neighborhood safety.

Highlights:

For more information, please click here.

Two states have recently undertaken efforts to implement a “revolving fund” to spur property rehabilitation.

Mississippi

Approved by the Governor in April 2025, House Bill 733, created the “Property Cleanup Revolving Fund.”
It authorizes the creation of a grant program administered by the Mississippi Home Corporation for property cleanup. Up to 15 grants can go to local governments totaling up to $2,000.00 each.
For a related media article, please click here.
To view the full text, please click here.

Pennsylvania
The House has passed HB 1574, which would establish the Redevelopment Authority Startup Loan Program. The bill now heads to the Senate for its consideration.
HB 1574 would create a revolving loan fund under the Department of Community and Economic Development. The fund would provide low-interest, long-term loans—up to $500,000—to county redevelopment authorities to acquire, rehabilitate and return blighted residential or commercial properties to productive use.
For a related media article, please click here.
To view the current status of the bill and the full text, please click here.