NEWMAN – Vacant homes are proving to be a magnet for trouble, adding to the struggles in neighborhoods already hard hit by the meltdown of the housing market and the continuing wave of foreclosures.

Empty dwellings can be found throughout Newman - most commonly in newer neighborhoods where buyers snapped up home at the peak of the market before the housing crisis hit.

With increasing frequency, police say, those homes are being occupied by transients, drug users or those looking for a place to party.

“We are getting a lot of complaints about people in the vacant homes,” Police Chief Adam McGill said recently . “It has really picked up in the last few weeks. We are probably getting five complaints a week.”

In some cases, McGill said, officers have found evidence that kids have been inside the vacant homes. Most frequently, though, he attributes the problem to a transient population made up primarily of young adults.

“In the last week, we have been to a number of homes with multiple mattresses laying around and tents in the back yard,” the chief added. “We have a transient, mobile population that doesn’t lay their head in the same place twice. They are staying with friends, or sometimes with people they don’t even know.”

In many cases, McGill theorized, those using the vacant homes as flophouses aren’t technically homeless.

“They may be people in their late teens or early 20s who might technically still live at mom and dad’s, but they only sleep at home a night or two a week,” he said.

Officers responding to reports of activity at vacant houses often find indicators of drug and alcohol use, according to McGill.

“People are going to look for somewhere to hide and be secluded,” he commented. “Unfortunately, some of the homes are being damaged in the process. There is no water or electricity. We have seen cases of them using lanterns or generators, and continuing to use the restrooms.”

In one instance, McGill said, police found a stolen car left at a vacant home.

“The people just abandoned a stolen vehicle in the driveway. They had clearly stayed in the house and then moved on, and left the vehicle behind,” he explained.

McGill does not blame the problem entirely on locals.

“Being on Highway 33 and near Interstate 5, we do get some transient criminals who take advantage of us,” he pointed out.

In very brazen cases, he noted, squatters may boldly move into a home without the neighbors realizing that they aren’t supposed to be there.

He encourages residents to report any suspicious activity around vacant houses to authorities.

“Let us go check it out if you see anything suspicious or that just doesn’t look right,” McGill emphasized. “If they’re breaking into the house next door, it could be your house next. You could be preventing your own burglary by notifying us of that activity.”