Obviously most places you can just plainly tell are abandoned. But I've come across quite a few places that it has actually been hard to tell. One time while scouting I found a house with a huge driveway in the middle of a cornfield. It looked in ruins and I could have sworn it was abandoned. So I drove down the driveway and found the homeowner sitting on his porch wondering what random car is driving towards his house. Awkward. apparently some people let their houses get so messy they look abandoned.

Anyway, are there any techniques you guys use to see if a place is actually abandoned. I know one which basically consists of putting a string of fishing line across the driveway or something. So if an owner lives there, the fishing line will be disturbed.

Any interesting techniques you guys use/do.

Haha, coming from WV there are lots of places that totally look abandoned/trashed and there is family of seven that lives there. I generally don't explore houses that much so I can't help you there. I'd say either way just general observation works, or perhaps stopping at the closest business and just asking a question about the place, i.e. mention you saw something you wanted to buy at said location and ask who you should contact.

A fair amount of industrial stuff looks at lease semi-abandoned until you see lights on/smokestacks etc.

It's a little bit of intuition, some blind luck and a lot of googling whether on maps or just general research. Thick or numerous cobwebs across front doors is always a good sign though.

The city of Cincinnati has a database of abandoned buildings that include their addresses and if they should remain abandoned. Perhaps your city does too. Let the city do all the work for ya. Also drive around and look for obvious signs like graffiti and lots of broken windows. Talking to locals (depending on the neighborhood ) is also a good bet.

When it comes to businesses/commercial buildings, google satellite images are my best friends. I generally look at the roofs and you can tell a lot from there. If the roof is brown or particularly splotchy, that means no one has repaired the roof in a while. Particularly around here where flat top roofs are popular, constant roof care is needed to stop leaks. Roofs that are glistening white or have pure black tar splotches are usually on the up keep for the roof repair.

Grown over driveways, walkways and non mowed lawns are usually a good sign. If you live in a place where it snows check for tires tracks, shoveled/plowed driveways etc. If a house has no curtains in the windows that is a pretty good sign to. Also look for eviction notices, or a condemned notice pinned to the front door.

Me and a friend were exploring some abandoned resorts recently. One we found by accident looked to be abandoned, although the lawn was mowed. When walking up to it we noticed the power was still on. Once on the grounds we noticed all doors were locked well and everything was in good shape. Looking through the windows we saw clean carpets, with a vacuum sitting nearby. There were even buckets on the ground to catch water from the ceiling. We decided not to stick around to long, took a few pictures and left. On our way back to the car we saw a guy walk right up to the front door and unlock it. Moral of the story is, it's just as important to look for signs that the place is NOT abandoned.

Observation and asking around. I live in a small town so it's pretty easy for me to establish when a house is abandoned. I'm just very careful and do my research. For instance...

click to view

Looks abandoned, but it's not. Well, technically no one lives in it but it is on private property and the owners (me and the spouse) are in and out of it several times a week. The driveway is so grown over that there is technically no longer a drive back to it. It's looked worse than this, but we've cleaned it up so that people know that it's being cared for. Keeps the squatters out. There are lots of "abandoned" houses sitting in the middle of actively farmed fields here. I have asked farmers permission to photograph a place if the farmer is in the area.

LOL

UER: putting the B and E in urBan Exploration

Industry and houses are really hard to tell.
Houses: look for mail box, news paper, garbage, tire tracks, cats.
Industry: Listen for active machinery, look for tire tracks.


Schools, commercial, and institutional stuff is usually really obvious because they have to stay pretty clean to be opened.

Posted by Mike Dijital LOL UER: putting the B and E in urBan Exploration

I heard a funny story from a former member who is currently banned, who once got into an "abandoned" home, only to hear snoring coming from the bedroom. He got out quick.

I'm not an expert by any stretch, but for houses you probably have to use a combination of a few clues. I'll toss in some of my ideas for anecdotal review.

Obviously asking neighbors is rather reliable, but you could also look up at telephone poles (if the phone and cable are aerial). Most places which offer cable service will actively disconnect people who do not pay - you can use a small pair of field glasses (binoculars) and see if the cable is disconnected. Usually has a yellow or green tag attached to the cable and sometimes a lock on the cable port.
I do not think they disconnect phone lines any longer (at least not physically) since IIRC the FCC requires the phone company to provide 911 access to everyone regardless of service.

Power lines are usually disconnected at the meter if that is accessible. 'Course by that time you're probably in the back yard and can gather some other telling clues as well. Watching the power meter will normally let you know if the place has power service. Even with everything "off", devices still plugged in draw a small amount of current (google power vampires if you need more info) and you can see the meter spin. If there is no meter in the box then it's usually a safe bet there is no power service.

Most residences get junk mail daily. You would probably want to monitor it for a few days to a week, but if they do not get some type of crap in the mail in that amount of time I would want to know their secret.

Posted by Steed I heard a funny story from a former member who is currently banned, who once got into an "abandoned" home, only to hear snoring coming from the bedroom. He got out quick.

Abstract (old member, not really around anymore) and I were exploring an old residential school about 10 years ago and had a similar experience. Everything was going great until I turned a corner and saw a guy watching TV. In his room. That I was now in. Luckily his back was to me.

Needless to say, I backed away slowly and we got the hell out of dodge.

We later learned it was the new owner.

Posted by Adv.Pack Industry and houses are really hard to tell. Houses: look for mail box, news paper, garbage, tire tracks, cats. Industry: Listen for active machinery, look for tire tracks. Schools, commercial, and institutional stuff is usually really obvious because they have to stay pretty clean to be opened.

Truth.

I once went into an old steel plant that looked pretty run down from the outside. They must have resumed operations because once we left the small room off old equipment we got into and entered the main plant there were trucks parked inside, lights on, a wall full of time cards, and a Wendy's drink somebody left on Friday.
We made is quick.

When it comes to residential properties, I agree with what others have said about looking for:

-overgrown driveways empty of vehicles (or with vehicles that obviously haven't moved in awhile)

-No window coverings

-eff'ed up roof

-overgrown lawn

-notices tacked to front door / phone books piled up on porch / general debris scattered about yard

-doors that don't appear to have been opened in awhile (i.e. leaves & junk have blown up against it) -or- doors & windows that remain wide open or ajar

-electric meter has been ripped out (where I live, this means the circular "meter" part is missing)

and may I add:

-broken windows. Because even the shittiest of housekeepers will at least attempt to rig up something to keep the elements out.

To be on the safe side: I always watch the property for awhile, at different times of day, to see if lights come on or any other changes occur, before I am comfortable enough to enter.

Good luck!

its not just residential properties either

There was a hospital in winthrop Mass and it looked totally abandoned.


yadda yadda yadda there was a family living in one of the wards, like you would go through the hospital center halllway double doors and it was like a time warp into a fully home funished, carpeted apartment... it was the strangest thing ever!

see the flowers on the second balcony, that was their apartment





now look at the rest, and tell me how you could have know a family was living in the hospital lol

My preferred method is to enter the premises late at night with only a faulty flashlight, and then stumble from room to room in the darkness timidly saying "Hello? Hello?" until a cat jumps out and scares the hell out of me.

Posted by Big Poppa My preferred method is to enter the premises late at night with only a faulty flashlight, and then stumble from room to room in the darkness timidly saying "Hello? Hello?" until a cat jumps out and scares the hell out of me.

LMFAO!! I have literally done this EXACT same thing bahahahaha!

Posted by Mike Dijital its not just residential properties either There was a hospital in winthrop Mass and it looked totally abandoned. yadda yadda yadda there was a family living in one of the wards, like you would go through the hospital center halllway double doors and it was like a time warp into a fully home funished, carpeted apartment... it was the strangest thing ever! see the flowers on the second balcony, that was their apartment now look at the rest, and tell me how you could have know a family was living in the hospital lol

That has to be one of the weirder things I've seen....

When it comes to houses I typically look for the obvious stuff, overgrown yard, paint job going to shit, roof going to shit, etc.. Even then though it's hard to tell. If the place is local then I'll drive passed it a lot different days of the week and times of the day and check for lights, cars, or any activity. The snow makes it easier because you can check for tire tracks.

Usually the best sign I see that a place isn't being monitored is broken windows. Letting the elements get in is a sure fire way to do some serious damage to the building so if windows are smashed and no one is doing anything about it, chances are no one is watching it all that well. Though there is the occasional complete shit falling apart farm house out here and people still come by and mow the lawns of so who knows. Luck definitely has a bit to do with it whether it's picking a location that's not being watched, or just picking the right time to visit to not get caught.

Honestly, it's difficult to figure out what is and isn't.

What everyone said above is true, but where I'm from...most of those things don't mean no one lives there. There's a house down the street from my town home that looks completely abandoned. No cars, overgrown lawn, broken windows patched up with wood...but lights go on by night and people come and go. Like, someone full on lives there but you'd never know unless you waited to see or tried going in.

Best option sometimes is to just wait and observe the place. Or even just ask around. I like to as realtors and show them my photography business card and no one questions it. Usually they can tell you if someone lives there or not.