At a recent Fair Housing Seminar, I attended a workshop taught by the Tacoma (WA) Police. They pointed out a few things to be on the lookout for when it comes to spotting illegal activity on your properties:

	If you smell cat urine (and there's no cat), there may be a meth lab in the unit, and you should get out immediately!
	Chemical odors, ether or hospital smells often signal drug activity.
	People involved in the manufacture of methane often smell like cat urine and have rotting teeth and/or brittle bones.
	Excessive moisture in the unit could be a sign of marijuana growing. It can also cause thousands of dollars worth of damage to your property.
	Check the wiring. Marijuana growers use excessive electricity and often try to cover up by rewiring to bypass the meter.
	How many people are in and out in a day? What do they take in with them? Often, stolen property is exchanged for drugs.
	How often does the occupant of the property leave each day? Do they have a regular schedule (like going to a job), or do they make 16 to 20 short trips in and out each day?

A popular tactic used by drug dealers is to have a clean-cut, respectable-looking person (usually female) with acceptable credit and references rent the property for them. She never actually moves in and lives there, however. It's almost impossible to catch this one up front, but you can nip it in the bud by visiting your property regularly to make sure the person living there is the one you screened.

You can also work to prevent drug activity in your properties by using caution when screening all your applicants. People who work for small private companies (landscaping services, cleaning companies, etc.) should be asked to provide several recent pay-stubs. Try to look up the company in the phone book, or check to see if they are licensed with the State Department of Revenue.

A bank account reference is also important, even if it's just a savings account. Watch for people who seem to be living a fairly affluent lifestyle, claim to have no bank account, and "pay cash for everything." Some people actually do, and they may be completely legitimate. But people involved in illegal activities hate to leave a paper trail, and often deal in cash only. It's just one more piece of the puzzle to look for.

These tips are not meant to make you paranoid, or overly cautious. Most tenants are law-abiding citizens who pay their rent and take reasonably good care of your property. But for those few bad apples out there—it pays to pay attention!