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We've Got These Infernal Bedbugs On The Run (Maybe)
By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Oct 18, 2018
Modified Oct 19, 2018
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By
Jake Offenhartz
Published Oct 18, 2018
Modified Oct 19, 2018
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The news out of the bedbug world is rarely good. Normally, it involves the blood-sucking pests arriving in some movie theater or transit system or intergovernmental headquarters, then rapidly spreading chaos and misery. We take no pleasure in sharing these accounts, and the joy of the above photo composite doesn't make up for the distressing videos of welted, bedbug-bitten skin. Maybe don't even click that last link there.
But finally there is something positive to report, bedbug-wise. According to the website Localize, which analyzes data about New York City addresses, the number of bedbug violations issued to landlords by the Department of Housing and Preservation has dropped by 28 percent in the last five years. Moreover, peak bedbug season—and also mosquito and ant and rat season—is now firmly behind us. (Not because bedbugs have any trouble surviving the winter, but likely as a result of people traveling more during the summer months, thus spreading the pests, according to Localize.)
To be clear, the decline in bedbug violations may not actually mean that bedbugs are becoming less rampant. Rather, experts believe that tenants are increasingly going to their landlords with reports of bedbugs, who, thanks to recent legislation, are now at least forced to acknowledge the problem.
“Incidents are not going down. But a lot of new laws are in place making it harder for landlords to run from the problem,” Timothy Wong, founder of M&M Pest Control, told Localize. “Landlords can’t hide anymore. So now, whenever there’s a bedbug issue, tenants are going straight to the landlord instead of 311. There’s less of a reason to go to the city, so complaints are going down.”
Of course, landlords frequently don't do what they're supposed to do, hence the violations, and at the same time there's still no requirement for how, exactly, bedbugs are supposed to be treated. There's also some research indicating that pesticide-resistant bedbugs with thicker shells are becoming more prevalent (even good bedbug news is horrifying).
As part of their research, Localize also looked at where bedbug-related violations were most common across the city. Their report found that the Bronx consistently had the highest violation rates per rental, followed by Brooklyn and Staten Island.
At a neighborhood level, Brooklyn's Flatbush neighborhood came in with the highest number of violations per 1,000 renting households, with 18.1, followed West Harlem, at 17.1. Six of the next eight most common violators were in the Bronx, with Prospect-Lefferts Gardens and Central Harlem also cracking the top ten.
You can also check the website to learn whether your building has had bedbug violations in the past, and sign up for an "update me" feature to be notified if one of your neighbors reports bedbugs.
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bedbugs
infestations
localize
Jake Offenhartz
Jake Offenhartz is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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